In Uganda, bacterial and fungal infections are prevalent especially, the sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS. Because of low socio‐economic empowerment, traditional beliefs and cultural barriers, the suffering people resort to use of herbal remedies in search of cure especially for rural women who rarely discuss/disclose diseases affecting secretive body parts. The study documented 67 medicinal plants distributed among 27 families and 51 genera used to treat fungal and bacterial infections in and around Queen Elizabeth Biosphere Reserve in western Uganda. The highest numbers of species were from Families Lamiaceae (13) and Asteraceae (11). The most commonly harvested plant parts were leaves (88.1%) and roots (23.9%). The most common growth form harvested were herbs (47.8%) and most of the medicinal plants used were wild species (67.2%). The main methods of herbal drug preparation were by squeezing, boiling and pounding and were mainly orally administered. However, most of the steamed plant species were inserted in the birth canal besides oral administration. Some plants such as Allium sativum, Aloe vera and Ocimum gratissimum are topically applied on the affected body parts. This vital indigenous knowledge about healing secretive and discrete diseases among the marginalized population requires urgent ethnobotanical studies to sustain livelihoods.

Aspilia pruliseta Schweinf. (Asteraceae) is a medicinal plant indigenous to Uganda and the neighboring countries of East Africa. It has been used extensively by the rural population for the treatment of fevers and malaria. During the antimalarial evaluation of this plant, four nontoxic diterpenes were isolated that possessed moderate activity against chloroquine-sensitive (D6) and chloroquine-resistant (W2) clones of Plasmodium falciparum, with IC(50) values ranging from 14 to 23 µM. These moderately active compounds included the previously undescribed diterpene, ENT-15 β-senecioyloxy-16,17-epoxy-kauran-18-oic acid that demonstrated an IC(50) value of 23.4 µM against clone D6, but was devoid of activity against clone W2. Four additional diterpenes were obtained from the aerial parts of A. pruliseta, but these known compounds were essentially inactive. The moderate activities of select diterpenes of A. pruliseta could account collectively for the historical and enduring use of this plant in traditional African medicine.

Leaf extracts of Mangifera indica (L.), a medicinal and horticultural plant were investigated for antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Esherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Using the agar‐well diffusion and the gradient serial dilution methods the extracts showed weak antibacterial activity against the study organisms compared with the positive control (gentamycin). The ethanolic extract was most active with minimum inhibitory concentration ranging from 5481.0 to 43750.0 μg ml−1. Chemical tests showed the presence of saponins, steroids and triterpenoids in the ether fraction, alkaloids, anthracenocides, coumarins, flavonones, reducing sugars, catechol and gallic tannins, saponins, steroids and triterpenoids in the ethanolic portion and anthracenocides, flavonones, reducing sugars in the aqueous fraction of the plant extract. These results shows that leaf extracts of M. indica possess some antibacterial activity that could be the basis for their medicinal use in Uganda.

Mangifera indica L. is a common horticulture and medicinal plant, which is used traditionally to treat various infections. A previous study has shown its leaf extracts to have antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This study investigated the activity of the leaf extracts against Clostridium tetani, which causes many deaths around the world. Ether and ethanolic leaf extracts were obtained by sequential extractions. Qualitative studies were carried out to determine the different classes of compounds in the extracts. The chemical tests showed that the ether extract had saponins, steroids and triterpenoids, while the ethanol extract had alkaloids, anthracenosides, coumarins, flavonones, reducing sugars, catechol and gallic tannins, saponins, steroids and triterpenoids. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the extracts against the study organism was determined using the gradient serial dilution method. Gentamycin and distilled water were used as controls. Both the ethereal and ethanolic fractions showed anti‐clostridium tetani activity with an MIC of 6.25 and 12.5 mg ml−1, respectively.

N-Substituted 2,4,5-trienamides have been synthesised by the reactions of a 4,4-dialkylbuta-2,3-dienal with diethyl N-alkyl-and NN-dialkylcarbamoylmethylphosphonates, and characterised by i.r., u.v., and n.m.r. spectra. An attempted Wittig reaction of hepta-2.3-dienal and diethyl N-isobutylcarbamoylmethylphosphonate resulted in mainly nucleophilic attack a t C-3 of the allenic aldehyde.