Ethnobotanical survey on plants used by traditional healers to fight against COVID-19 in Fez city, Northern Morocco

Abstract

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has now been spread around the world in the form of a highly contagious pandemic. The lack of effective vaccines against this lethal viral infection is pushing researchers to identify potential sources from natural products that can help fight the pandemic. In Morocco, medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) have long been used to combat infectious diseases. According to our knowledge, this is the first ethnobotanical survey in Fez city, aimed to quantify the ethnobotanical knowledge of medicinal plants used by herbalists for fighting against the COVID-19.Methods: An ethnobotanical survey was conducted in Fez city with traditional herbalists, in a period of two months (from the beginning of November to the end of December 2020). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 50 well-known traditional herbalists. A quantitative analysis approach was used resulting in the determination of plant use value (PUV) and family use value (FUV) to evaluate the ethnobotanical knowledge.Results: In total, 49 medicinal plants species were recorded belonging to 28 botanical families. According to the PUV index, the most important species were Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. & Perry, Thymus vulgaris L., Eucalyptus globulus Labill., and Artemisia vulgaris L. The Lamiaceae was the most dominant family. The aerial part was the most used plant part. Most remedies were prepared in the infusion form and mostly administered orally. According to herbalists, 47.36 % of customers were very satisfied using herbal remedies to combat COVID-19. Conclusion:The ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological information collected in our study provides basic data on medicinal plants which is promising in the treatment and prevention of COVID-19. Thus, it is recommended that the safety and efficacy of these plants will be confirmed through pharmacological, toxicological and phytochemical studies.

Ethnobotanical Survey of Medicinal Plants Used in the Treatment of COVID-19 and Related Respiratory Infections in Ogbomosho South and North Local Government Areas, Oyo State, Nigeria

“…Generally, the majority (55.4%) of the people with indigenous knowledge in this study were older than age 51. This result is similar to previous reports on the ethnobotanical survey of indigenous medicinal plants in Nigeria [ 24 ] and Northern Morocco [ 36 ]. The predominance of elderly participants with indigenous knowledge in the present study agrees with previous reports that older people (above age 50) are usually more knowledgeable about the practice of herbal medicine [ 24 ].…”

“…Regarding the level of education, individuals with a tertiary education level constituted the minority (19.64%) of the participants. This result may be attributed to the fact that the practice of traditional medicine or herbalism does not require a degree but is acquired by experience and learning from older generations [ 36 ]. Our result is in line with an ethnobotanical survey of local flora used for medicinal purposes conducted in Lagos, Nigeria, which reported that 79% of the participants with indigenous knowledge had only a primary education [ 39 ].…”

Role of ethno-phytomedicine knowledge in healthcare of COVID-19: advances in traditional phytomedicine perspective

“…In Morocco, the most commonly used medicinal plant against COVID-19 was Eucalyptus globulus Labill., which was reported in 3 different studies [ 25 , 32 , 44 ]. Eucalyptus globulus Labill., its essential oils, and active compounds have antiviral effects and anti-infective properties [ 16 , 30 ].…”

“…& L.M.Perry , Thymus vulgaris L., Eucalyptus globulus Labill . , and Artemisia vulgaris L Benkhaira et al [ 25 ] North-Western Morocco 20 Eucalyptus globulus Labill . , Azadirachta indica A.Juss.…”

Ruta montana(L.) L.: An insight into its medicinal value, phytochemistry, biological properties, and toxicity

“…It is well seen that the amount and nature of these volatile compounds vary according to the harvest seasons and environmental factors, including geographical origin, phenological stage, and genotype. This variation also depends on the experimental conditions, including the drying process, storage, oil extraction method, and the plant's part used (55)(56)(57)(58). According to the available studies, we notice that the RM plant is more studied in Algeria, it is therefore recommended to examine the RM plants of other regions and countries, and it is quite remarkable that besides leaves, flowers, and stems, other plant parts need further studies to reveal new bioactive molecules.…”