Ethnomedicinal uses of plants by major ethnic groups of Hilly Districts in Nepal: A review

Plants are used as ethnomedicine by indigenous people living all around the world. In Nepal, plants are being used for healing diseases since a long period by various ethnic groups of rural areas due to difficulty in the availability of modern medicines. Many researchers have contributed to the documentation of ethnomedicinal knowledge on plants in Nepal; however few studies have been carried out on hilly districts. Our study aims to review and compile all the published research documents on ethnomedicinal uses of plants by various ethnic groups of hilly districts in Nepal. Altogether 35 published documents till August 2020, accessed through Google Scholar and Research Gate were selected for our study. A total of 215 plant species from 93 families was found to be used for the treatment of 139 types of diseases by 10 ethnic groups of 13 hilly districts. Also, leaves were used for the treatment of maximum numbers of diseases (69). Plants from Fabaceae, Asteraceae, and Poaceae, etc. were used to treat major diseases like; diabetes, asthma, stomachache, fever, jaundice, etc. Traditional knowledge on medicinal uses of plants is needed to be explored and documented to preserve traditional medicinal knowledge as well as medicinal plants.

Antibacterial activities of aqueous and methanol extracts of Nigella sativa on some multiple drug resistant diarrheic bacterial agents

Combinations of various antimicrobial agents have been introduced as an extra successful strategy to combat multiple drug resistant infections. This study was undertaken to evaluate the effects of Nigella sativa seeds on several multi-drug resistant diarrheic bacterial agents. 30 Stool samples were collected from Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), in Nigeria and standard biochemical tests were performed to confirm the diarrheic isolates. Then, antimicrobial susceptibility testing was done on the organisms, followed by screening the effectiveness of Nigella sativa seed extracts on the bacterial agents obtained from the samples. 16 samples tested positive for diarrheic agents Escherichia coli, Escherichia coli 0157H:7 and Klebsiella pneumoniae. The methanolic extracts of Nigella sativa showed the highest zone of inhibition of 12mm for K. pneumoniae at a concentration of 300mg/dl ,10mm for E. coli 0157H:7 at a concentration of 200mg/dl, and 10mm for E. coli at a concentration of 200mg/dl, respectively. The methanolic extracts showed much stronger activity than the aqueous extracts of Nigella sativa which did not show significant activity towards the diarrheic agents isolated.

Evaluation of antidiarrhea and antimicrobial activities of methanol extract leaves of Gmelina arborea

Since ancient times, plants have commonly been used in folk medicine for the treatment of various ailments. This work evaluated the efficacy of methanol extract of Gmelina arborea leaf as antidiarrheal and antimicrobial agents. The antimicrobial activity was conducted using standard microbiological techniques and antidiarrheal activity of the extract was carried out with 24 Wistar rats which were randomly grouped into 6 (n = 4). Group 1 served as control and received distilled water (10 ml/kg), group 2 received Loperamide, groups 3 was administered 10ml/kg of castor oil only (negative control), group 4 through 6 received Gmelina arborea at different doses of 200mg/kg-800mg/kg respectively. Diarrheal was induced using oral administration of 10 ml/kg of castor oil. Animals were kept in separate metabolic cages with transparent plastic container beneath the cage to collect faces. Latency time, frequency of defecation, total surface of impregnation and fresh total stools weight were measured for 8 hrs. The results of the antimicrobial activity of Gmelina arborea leaf extract showed that Staphylococcus aureus and E. coli were the most susceptible strains to Gmelina arborea extract with zone of inhibition of 9.73±0.64mm at 1000mg/kg of the extract. The feacal drops at 2/3hrs was significantly different (p<0.05) in all the extract groups when compared to the untreated group, however the extract treated groups showed non-significant (p>0.05) difference when compared to the standard drug. The findings from this study suggested that methanol leaf extract of Gmelina arborea contain pharmacologically active substances with antidiarrhea and antimicrobial properties.

Ethnobotanical study of the toxicity of Ecballium elaterium (L.) A. Rich in the Northest of Algeria

Medicinal plants still remain a source of medical care in developing countries, in the absence of a modern medical system. The use of herbal medicine is deeply rooted in our culture, because Algeria is renowned for the richness of its medicinal flora which includes hundreds of plant species. Ecballium elaterium (L.) A. Rich., the species reported in this study is traditionally used in Algeria for a wide range of illnesses. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential toxicity of it. Many herbalists (two hundred) in different regions in Northern Algeria (Tébessa, Khenchela, Oum El Bouaghi, Constantine, Skikda were questioned to recognize the toxicological concern of E. elaterium in Algerian traditional medicine in these regions.

In-vitro antiulcer activities of petal extract of Crocus sativus var. cashmerianus

Medicinal plants have been known for millennia as a rich source of traditional therapeutic agents for the prevention of diseases and ailments. The aim of the present study was performed to evaluate the antiulcer activities of hydro-alcoholic extracts of petals of Crocus sativus var. Cashmerianus by in-vitro methods viz. acid neutralizing capacity and H+/K+ - ATPase inhibition activity. In acid neutralizing capacity method, the petals extract significantly reduced acidity to 6.10 at a concentration of 1000 mg/ml as compared to 11.90 with standard 500 mg/ml of Aluminium hydroxide + Magnesium hydroxide combination. However, H+/K+ - ATPase inhibition activity method, petals extract showed maximum percentage inhibition of 70.31 % at the concentration 400µg/ml as compared to 73.82 % with a similar dose of standard Omeprazole. The IC 50 value of petals extract of C. sativus var. cashmerianus is shown 100 µg/ml in comparison with standard omeprazole of 82.5 µg/ml. The study reveals that the petals extract of C. sativus var. cashmerianus may contain compounds possessing acid neutralize and enzyme inhibition activities, thus it can be used as an alternative medicine for gastrointestinal disorders.

Contribution to the knowledge of melliferous plants: Ethno apicultural survey with beekeepers in the District of Ziguinchor, Kolda and Sedhiou (Senegal)

An ethno-apicultural survey was carried out for the plant species pollinated by honey bees in the green district of Casamance (South Senegal). This survey followed a well-established questionnaire concerning beekeepers in these areas. The listed melliferous flora was made of 61 species either. It’s divided into 58 genera and 30 families though the most represented are in decreasing order Fabaceae with 12 species (19.67%) followed by Rutaceae and Malvaceae with 4 species (6.55% each), Arecaceae, Anacardiaceae, Combretaceae, Gramineae, Myrtaceae, with 3 species (4.91% each), then Chrysobalanaceae, Lamiaceae, Meliaceae and Rubiaceae with 2 species (3.27% each) and then Acanthaceae, Asteraceae, Canabaceae, Verbenaceae, Apocynaceae, Bignoniaceae, Annonaceae, Hymenocardiaceae, Icacinaceae, Lauraceae, Moringaceae, Musaceae, Celastraceae, Rhizophoraceae, Sapindaceae, Sterculiceae, Moraceae, Ochnaceae, with 1 species (1.63% each). Melliferous plants include 47.54% nectariferous plants followed by nectariferous polliniferous plants with 37.70% and finally polliniferous species with 14.75%. This study enabled us to identify eight (08) species with high melliferous value. To enhance the value of these plants, further studies on foraging activity and nectar production will be led to prove their real melliferous potential.

Evaluation of antimicrobial potential of some spices from apiaceae sold in herbal shops

Spices are a part of the plants used for many purposes as preservatives and as colorants in foods or as medicinal intention. Main aim of the present research was to estimate the potential antimicrobial activity of some spices from Apiaceae family such as Amni visnaga (Diş otu, Hıltan), Anethum graveolens (Dereotu), Apium graveolens (Kereviz), Coriandrum sativum (Kişniş), Cuminum cyminum (Kimyon), Daucus carota (Havuç), Foeniculum vulgare (Rezene), Petroselinum sativum (Maydanoz), Pimpinella anisum (Anason). Thus, the fruits of the plants are used in the experiments. The fruits have been extracted by n-hexane, and all extracts have been subjected to TLC (Thin Layer Chromatography). The n-hexane extracts were screened for their potential in vitro antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 13883, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853 and antifungal activity against Candida albicans ATCC 10231 by microbroth dilution method. The hexane extracts of the fruits of Coriandrum sativum, Anethum graveolens, Daucus carota, and Pimpinella anisum did not show antimicrobial activity against tested microorganisms. Except these, the other extracts having MIC values of 2.5-5-10 mg/mL exhibited antimicrobial effect against some tested microorganisms. These results demonstrate that the extracts which have an antimicrobial effect can probably play a role as an antimicrobial agent owing to their nonpolar components which are accumulated to the n-hexane extracts.

In Vitro Egg Hatchability Inhibition Effect of Albizia gummifera, Phytolacca dodecandra, and Vernonia amygdalina against Natural Infection of Ovine GIT Nematodes

An in-vitro experiment was carried out to evaluate the egg hatching inhibition effect of three herbal plants, namely;Albizia gummifera, Phytolacca dodecandra, and Vernonia amygdalina. The leaves of these plants were collected; air dried and powdered with pestle and mortar, and then hydro-alcoholic extraction was performed and in measuring the percentage yield, P. dodecandra givesbetter yield (15.34%). Crude extract of these plants were evaluated for egg hatchability assay at different concentrations (3mg/ml, 5mg/ml and 10mg/ml) for each plant and the experiment was replicated five times. Ivermectin (0.1ml/ml) was used as positive control. Among the plants, the crude extracts of P. dodecandrahad better activity that achieved maximum (100%) egg hatch inhibition at concentrations of 5 mg/ml while V. amygdalina and A. gummifera induced complete inhibition at concentration of 10 mg/ml after 48 hours of exposure. All the three plant crude extracts were inhibit egg hatchability significantly (p< 0.05) as compared with the negative control but the inhibition among them were not significantly different in the effect. In conclusion, this study revealed that all of the three plant extracts have high inhibition potential on the hatchability of gastrointestinal nematode eggs. More detailed study on vivo anthelmintic effects of these plants with different extraction methods and phytochemical screening should be done.

Evaluation of antimicrobial potential of some spices from apiaceae sold in herbal shops

Spices are a part of the plants used for many purposes as preservatives and as colorants in foods or as medicinal intention. Main aim of the present research was to estimate the potential antimicrobial activity of some spices from Apiaceae family such as Amni visnaga (Diş otu, Hıltan), Anethum graveolens (Dereotu), Apium graveolens (Kereviz), Coriandrum sativum (Kişniş), Cuminum cyminum (Kimyon), Daucus carota (Havuç), Foeniculum vulgare (Rezene), Petroselinum sativum (Maydanoz), Pimpinella anisum (Anason). Thus, the fruits of the plants are used in the experiments. The fruits have been extracted by n-hexane, and all extracts have been subjected to TLC (Thin Layer Chromatography). The n-hexane extracts were screened for their potential in vitro antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 13883, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853 and antifungal activity against Candida albicans ATCC 10231 by microbroth dilution method. The hexane extracts of the fruits of Coriandrum sativum, Anethum graveolens, Daucus carota, and Pimpinella anisum did not show antimicrobial activity against tested microorganisms. Except these, the other extracts having MIC values of 2.5-5-10 mg/mL exhibited antimicrobial effect against some tested microorganisms. These results demonstrate that the extracts which have an antimicrobial effect can probably play a role as an antimicrobial agent owing to their nonpolar components which are accumulated to the n-hexane extracts.

In vitro egg hatchability inhibition effect of Albizia gummifera, Phytolacca dodecandra, and Vernonia amygdalina against natural infection of ovine GIT nematodes

An in-vitro experiment was carried out to evaluate the egg hatching inhibition effect of three herbal plants, namely;Albizia gummifera, Phytolacca dodecandra, and Vernonia amygdalina. The leaves of these plants were collected; air dried and powdered with pestle and mortar, and then hydro-alcoholic extraction was performed and in measuring the percentage yield, P. dodecandra givesbetter yield (15.34%). Crude extract of these plants were evaluated for egg hatchability assay at different concentrations (3mg/ml, 5mg/ml and 10mg/ml) for each plant and the experiment was replicated five times. Ivermectin (0.1ml/ml) was used as positive control. Among the plants, the crude extracts of P. dodecandrahad better activity that achieved maximum (100%) egg hatch inhibition at concentrations of 5 mg/ml while V. amygdalina and A. gummifera induced complete inhibition at concentration of 10 mg/ml after 48 hours of exposure. All the three plant crude extracts were inhibit egg hatchability significantly (p< 0.05) as compared with the negative control but the inhibition among them were not significantly different in the effect. In conclusion, this study revealed that all of the three plant extracts have high inhibition potential on the hatchability of gastrointestinal nematode eggs. More detailed study on vivo anthelmintic effects of these plants with different extraction methods and phytochemical screening should be done.