ANTIMYCOBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF SOME MEDICINAL PLANTS IN NIGER STATE, NIGERIA

Ten Nigerian medicinal plants Abrus precatorius, Annona senegalensis, Anogeissus leiocarpus, Crateva adansonii, Detarium microcarpum, Faba spp, Neocarya macrophylla, Ocimum gratissimum, Securidaca longpenduculata and Terminalia avicennioides used by traditional medicine practitioners for the management of infectious and chronic diseases such as tuberculosis and whooping cough were investigated for in vitro antimycobacterial activity against attenuated strains of Mycobacterium bovis (BCG). Hexane and methanol extracts of the plant materials were obtained by maceration. The antimycobacterial activity was determined by the broth microdilution method. The hexane extracts of Anogeissus leiocarpus and Terminalia avicennioides showed strong inhibitory activity at 312µg/ml. Eight of the ten plant extracts showed moderate inhibitory activity in either hexane or methanol extract at 1250µg/ml. While the hexane and methanol extracts of Detarium microcarpum and Neocarya macrophylla did not exhibit any significant activity. These observed activities could be associated with secondary metabolites in these plants. This study demonstrates the efficacy of Nigerian medicinal plants as potential agents in the management of the tuberculosis disease

Unexpected High Losses of Anopheles gambiae Larvae Due to Rainfall

Background - Immature stages of the malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae experience high mortality, but its cause is poorly understood. Here we study the impact of rainfall, one of the abiotic factors to which the immatures are frequently exposed, on their mortality. Methodology/Principal Findings - We show that rainfall significantly affected larval mosquitoes by flushing them out of their aquatic habitat and killing them. Outdoor experiments under natural conditions in Kenya revealed that the additional nightly loss of larvae caused by rainfall was on average 17.5% for the youngest (L1) larvae and 4.8% for the oldest (L4) larvae; an additional 10.5% (increase from 0.9 to 11.4%) of the L1 larvae and 3.3% (from 0.1 to 3.4%) of the L4 larvae were flushed away and larval mortality increased by 6.9% (from 4.6 to 11.5%) and 1.5% (from 4.1 to 5.6%) for L1 and L4 larvae, respectively, compared to nights without rain. On rainy nights, 1.3% and 0.7% of L1 and L4 larvae, respectively, were lost due to ejection from the breeding site. Conclusions/Significance - This study demonstrates that immature populations of malaria mosquitoes suffer high losses during rainfall events. As these populations are likely to experience several rain showers during their lifespan, rainfall will have a profound effect on the productivity of mosquito breeding sites and, as a result, on the transmission of malaria. These findings are discussed in the light of malaria risk and changing rainfall patterns in response to climate chang

The antimicrobial activities of methanolic extracts of Eucalyptus camaldulensis and Terminalia catappa against some pathogenic microorganisms

Methanolic extracts of leaves of Eucalyptus camaldulensis and Terminalia catappa were studied for in vitro microbial activities by agar dilution method. The phytochemical analysis of the crude extracts of the medicinal plants revealed the presence of saponin, saponin glycosides, steroid, cardiac glycoside, tannins, volatile oils, phenols and balsam (gum). The methanolic extracts of the two plants inhibited the growth of Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 103207 and Clinical strain respectively) but had no inhibitory effects on Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi and Escherichia coli. Candida albicans was inhibited by the crude extracts of E. camaldulensis only. Accelerated gradient chromatography (AGC) gave fractions of the extract of T. catappa that were more active on Candida albicans and Escherichia coli than the crude extract. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the extracts ranged from 1.25mg/ml to 5mg/ml. The results obtained suggest that T. catappa and E. camaldulensis can be used in treating diseases caused by the test organisms

Ethno-Medicinal Plants and Methods Used by Gwandara Tribe of Sabo Wuse in Niger State, Nigeria, to Treat Mental Illness

The Gwandara people of Sabo Wuse in Niger State, Nigeria are the original inhabitants of Wuse in Abuja Municipal Area Council. They were resettled at this present location of Sabo Wuse from Wuse in the Federal Capital Territory Abuja when the seat of government moved from Lagos to Abuja 30 years ago. Sabo Wuse still remains relatively a remote settlement and their lifestyle unchanged. They still depend to a large extent on their traditional knowledge of medicinal plants to treat ailments. Ethnobotanical survey was conducted to identify and document methods traditionally utilized for treatment of mental illness and to expand the quality and quantity of information for research and development especially in the area of new drug discovery and development. About sixty seven (67) Traditional Medicine Practitioners were interviewed orally with use of questionnaire. From our survey, various methods were found to be used by the traditional medicine practitioners to treat mental illness and associated disorders. These include music, incantations and medicinal plants in various formulations - decoction, powder, infusion - which are administered in various ways like fumigation, inhalation, bathing, steaming and drinking. Eighteen plant species belonging to twelve different families were documented to be included in these therapies. In conclusion, there is an array of plants used locally to treat mental illness and it is recommended that such surveys should be funded and leads for drugs to treat mental illness obtained from such, at the same time documenting our indigenous knowledge

IN VITRO ANTIMYCOBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF TWO MEDICINAL PLANTS IDENTIFIED FROM NIGER STATE, NIGERIA

The global threat of tuberculosis demands for search for alternative antimycobacterial drugs [1]. The crude methanolic extracts of eight Nigerian medicinal plant species used in the treatment of TB and other respiratory diseases were evaluated for activity against a clinical isolate of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and attenuated Mycobacterium bovis (BCG) using broth microdilution method. The plant parts used were obtained as described by the users from a forest near Baddegi, Niger State, Nigeria. Voucher specimens were deposited in the Herbarium at the Department of Biological Sciences, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Nigeria and National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), Abuja, Nigeria. Two hundred grams (200g) of each dried plant material was powdered and extracted by maceration with methanol for 72h at room temperature (3 x 250mL). All the crude extracts were filtered and evaporated in vacuo (350C). Each extract was then partitioned with n-hexane-MeOH (3 x 250mL, 1: 1) to give n -hexane and MeOH solubles as well as all the partitioned extracts for each plant were combined; concentrated and dried in vacuo. Both hexane and methanol extracts of each plant species were tested for antimycobacterial activity. Four out of the eight plant extracts exhibited inhibitory activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis at 78 and 1250μg/mL [2]. The hexane fractions obtained after fractionation were the most active fractions for all the plants tested against BCG, having Anogeissus leiocarpus and Terminalia avicennioides exhibiting the highest activity at 312 and 200μg/mL respectively. Fractions Ta5 and Al4 obtained on further purification exhibited most significant activity (MIC 4.7μg/mL, 7.8μg/mL) respectively. From the results of phytochemical analysis, terpenes and triterpenoid saponins are the most prominent compounds in these fractions and several reports earlier indicated that these metabolites are potential antimycobacterial agents [1]. This class of metabolites presents interesting area for further investigation with special attention on the Combretaceae family from Nigeria flora. References: [1] Copp, BR: The Review of Natural Products with antimycobacterial activity. Nat. Prod. Rep., 20(6): 535-557. (2003). [2] Mann, A., Amupitan, J. O., Oyewale, A.O., Okogun, J. I., Ibrahim, K., Oladosu, P., Lawson, L., Olajide, I., and Nnamdi, A.: Evaluation of in vitro antimycobacterial activity of Nigerian plants used for treatment of respiratory diseases, Afri. J. Biotech., 7 (11): 1630-1636 (2008

Tetranortriterpenoids and related compounds. Part 26. Tecleanin, a possible precursor of limonin, and other new tetranortriterpenoids from <i>Teclea grandifolia</i> Engl. (Rutaceae)

Tecleanin and 7-deacetylproceranone, two new tetranortriterpenoids from Teclea grandifolia Engl. (Rutaceae), have been assigned structures (2) and (4) respectively. Tecleanin has the same highly oxidised ring A as limonin but a carbocyclic ring D. A third new limonoid was identified as 7-deacetylazadirone (13)

Anti-sickling, Analgesic and Anti-inflammatory Properties of 3,5-Dimethoxy-4-Hydroxy Benzoic Acid and 2,3,4-Trihydroxyacetophenone

Effects of 3, 5 - dimethoxy - 4 - hydroxybenzoic acid and 2, 3, 4 - trihydroxyacetophenone were studied on haemoglobin S (Hb S) polymerisation, analgesia and inflammation using Hb S solution, rats and mice. UV spectrophotometric procedure was used to monitor the polymerization of the Hb S. Acetic acid induced writhing in mice and egg albumin induced rat paw edema procedures were used to evaluate analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities of the compounds respectively. The results indicate that both drugs inhibit the process of polymerization significantly, possibly by direct action on the Hb S molecules. The drugs inhibited acetic acid induced pain and decreased egg albumin induced oedema. It is concluded that 3, 5 - dimethoxy - 4 - hydroxybenzoic acid and 2, 3, 4 - trihydroxyacetophenone may have some value in the management of sickle cell disease