Laboratoire de Pharmacognosie, de Bromatologie et de Nutrition Humaine, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Campus de la Plaine, CP205/9, Bd du Triomphe, 1050 Bruxelles, Belgium; Programme de Recherche en Phytomédicaments et Sciences de la Vie, Institut de Recherche Scientifique et Technologique (IRST), BP 227 Butare, Rwanda.
J Ethnopharmacol. 2013 Nov 25;150(2):708-17. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2013.09.031. Epub 2013 Oct 3.
Voluntary depigmentation, a very common practice in sub-Saharan Africa, often performed with pharmaceutical products diverted from their pharmacological use, may cause severe dermatological and systemic side effects. The present work aims at investigating whether and which herbs were used in Rwanda for similar purposes before the advent of the current depigmentation craze; this may give clues at herbal treatments possibly advantageous compared to current products.
Sixty-one traditional healers, mostly representatives of their associations, were surveyed by questionnaires for knowledge and practice of voluntary depigmentation. Recipes or plants used, plant parts, harvest area, preparation methods, dosage and route of administration were recorded. Most of the cited herbs were harvested with the help of traditional healers and identified by comparison with voucher specimens; herbal vouchers of the five most cited herbs were deposited in official herbaria.
All surveyed traditional healers have knowledge of voluntary depigmentation; the population currently practicing do not recourse to their services but obtain bleaching products directly from the market. Traditional healers disclosed recipes prescribed or self-used (often by women) in their youth; others cited recipes are used to treat skin diseases with properties of "clarification", "black skin stain removal", in cases of hyperpigmentation, and/or "skin softening". Curiously, from the 28 recipes cited by traditional healers, all are mono-herbal preparations; most of the plants are mixed with butter for application to the skin.
Compared to other pathophysiological conditions, there is currently a very limited use of herbal preparations for depigmentation. Five herbs had a citation percentage equal or above to 50%, Brillantaisia cicatricosa Lindau (Acanthaceae), Chenopodium ugandae (Aellen) Aellen (Chenopodiaceae), Dolichopentas longiflora Oliv. (Rubiaceae), Protea madiensis Oliv. (Proteaceae) and Sesamum angolense Welw. (Pedaliaceae); in vitro experiments indicated a modulation of melanogenesis by these plant extracts, confirming the information obtained from traditional healers.
在撒哈拉以南非洲，自愿脱色是一种非常普遍的做法，通常使用从药理学用途转移的药物产品进行，可能会导致严重的皮肤和全身副作用。本研究旨在调查在当前脱色热潮出现之前，卢旺达是否以及使用了哪些草药来达到类似的目的；这可能为与当前产品相比可能具有优势的草药治疗提供线索。
通过问卷对 61 名传统治疗师进行了调查，他们主要是其协会的代表，以了解他们对自愿脱色的知识和实践。记录了配方或使用的植物、植物部位、收获区域、制备方法、剂量和给药途径。引用的大多数草药都是在传统治疗师的帮助下采集的，并与凭证标本进行了比较；五种引用最多的草药的草药凭证已存放在官方标本馆中。
所有接受调查的传统治疗师都了解自愿脱色；目前从事该行业的人不会向他们寻求服务，而是直接从市场上购买漂白产品。传统治疗师披露了他们年轻时开具或自用的处方（通常是女性）；其他引用的处方用于治疗具有“澄清”、“去除黑色皮肤污渍”、色素沉着过度和/或“皮肤软化”等特性的皮肤病。有趣的是，在传统治疗师引用的 28 个配方中，全部都是单草药制剂；大多数植物与黄油混合用于涂敷皮肤。
与其他病理生理状况相比，目前用于脱色的草药制剂的使用非常有限。有五种草药的引用率等于或高于 50%，分别是 Brillantaisia cicatricosa Lindau（爵床科）、Chenopodium ugandae（藜科）、Dolichopentas longiflora Oliv.（茜草科）、Protea madiensis Oliv.（山龙眼科）和 Sesamum angolense Welw.（豆科）；体外实验表明这些植物提取物对黑色素生成有调节作用，证实了从传统治疗师那里获得的信息。
