An Inventory of South African Medicinal Plants Used in the Management of Sexually Transmitted and Related Opportunistic Infections: An Appraisal and Some Scientific Evidence (1990–2020)

Abstract

The current work is aimed at generating the first inventory of South African medicinal plants used in the treatment of sexually transmitted and related opportunistic infections associated with HIV-AIDS. This is important in assisting researchers to access a list of plant species to evaluate for potential phytocompounds, as this area of research is greatly lagging in South Africa. A total of 335 medicinal plants from 103 families have been documented in the current work. The most represented families are Fabaceae (11.64%) and Asteraceae (6.27%). Herbs constitute 36.53%, trees 32.34%, shrubs 29.04%, climbers 1.80% and parasites 0.30%. It is worrying that on the plant parts used, the roots constitute 47.18%, while leaves and stem bark yield 16.62 and 15.01%, respectively. Catharanthus roseus exhibited the highest number of citations (19), while Peltophorum africanum had 14 and both Carica papaya and Vachelia karoo had 12. In the mode of administration of the reported medicinal plant species, most of the plants are boiled and taken orally (48.22%), while other plant species are used as mouth washes (3.25%). Although there is reasonable in vitro activity of some of the plant species, validating the relevance of use, there is still a need to explore the mode of action of such plant species; isolated compounds and possible derivatives thereof are of paramount importance and need to be explored as well. Furthermore, toxicological aspects of such plant species need to be explored.

Fabaceae: South African Medicinal Plant Species Used in the Treatment and Management of Sexually Transmitted and Related Opportunistic Infections Associated with HIV-AIDS

“…In the current work, South African medicinal plants from the Fabaceae family, used in the treatment of sexually transmitted and related infections, are documented from various search engines such as Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science, and Science direct, as well as other sources such as books and various theses and dissertation documents from various universities within the country. Although plenty of medicinal plants in South Africa are reported to treat STIs and related infections, it is important to note that there is little evidence, particularly on the in vitro antimicrobial activity of these plants against a plethora of microorganisms implicated as causative agents of STIs [10]. Furthermore, in vivo and toxicological aspects of these plants need to be explored.…”

“…Medicinal plants from the Fabaceae family, used in the treatment of sexually transmitted and related infections, are summarized in Table 2, with columns showing the plant species (scientific names) matched using the Plantzlist, National Biodiversity Institute (NBI) to comply with both national and international standards [10]. Furthermore, to avoid using synonyms of the medicinal plants documented and to verify the authors' names, https://powo.science.kew.org/ (accessed on 24 August 2023) was also used.…”

An ethnobotanical study of traditionally used medicinal plants: Case study from Assam, India

“…Across borders, Fabaceae stands tall as a stalwart ally in combating both human and animal afflictions, its diverse traits rendering it indispensable to humanity's well-being. Whether as medicine, sustenance, or ecological stewardship, the multifaceted role of Fabaceae renders it a cornerstone of our relationship with the natural world (Mongalo & Raletsena 2023).…”

Ethnobotanical Study of Spontaneous Medicinal Plants Gouraya’s National Park (Bejaia- Algeria)

“…Traditional knowledge is now a valuable resource for researchers in the pharmaceutical industry. Physicians, herbalists, and pharmacists understand the healing power of medicinal plants in making diseases more effective (WHO, 2002;Urso et al, 2016;Mongalo & Raletsena, 2022). It is currently proven that about 20% of the plant species growing worldwide have therapeutic or cosmetic properties, as they contain molecules or active principles with different biological properties.…”