Obakiro Samuel Baker, Kiprop Ambrose, Kowino Isaac, Kigondu Elizabeth, Odero Mark Peter, Omara Timothy, Bunalema Lydia
Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Busitema University, P.O. Box 1460, Mbale, Uganda.
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, School of Sciences and Aerospace Studies, Moi University, P.O. Box 3900-30100, Eldoret, Kenya.
Trop Med Health. 2020 Aug 14;48:68. doi: 10.1186/s41182-020-00256-1. eCollection 2020.
Many studies on the treatment of tuberculosis (TB) using herbal medicines have been undertaken in recent decades in East Africa. The details, however, are highly fragmented. The purpose of this study was to provide a comprehensive overview of the reported medicinal plants used to manage TB symptoms, and to analyze scientific reports on their effectiveness and safety.
A comprehensive literature search was performed in the major electronic databases regarding medicinal plants used in the management of TB in East Africa. A total of 44 reports were retrieved, and data were collected on various aspects of the medicinal plants such as botanical name, family, local names, part(s) used, method of preparation, efficacy, toxicity, and phytochemistry. The data were summarized into percentages and frequencies which were presented as tables and graphs.
A total of 195 species of plants belonging to 68 families and 144 genera were identified. Most encountered species were from Fabaceae (42.6%), Lamiaceae (19.1%), Asteraceae (16.2%), and Euphorbiaceae (14.7%) families. Only 36 medicinal plants (18.5%) have been screened for antimycobacterial activity. Out of these, 31 (86.1%) were reported to be bioactive with minimum inhibitory concentrations ranging from 47 to 12,500 μg/ml. Most tested plant extracts were found to have acceptable acute toxicity profiles with cytotoxic concentrations on normal mammalian cells greater than 200 μg/ml. The most commonly reported phytochemicals were flavonoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, saponins, cardiac glycosides, and phenols. Only , , and have further undergone isolation and characterization of the pure bioactive compounds.
East Africa has a rich diversity of medicinal plants that have been reported to be effective in the management of symptoms of TB. More validation studies are required to promote the discovery of antimycobacterial drugs and to provide evidence for standardization of herbal medicine use.
近几十年来，东非开展了许多关于使用草药治疗结核病（TB）的研究。然而，细节高度分散。本研究的目的是全面概述已报道的用于缓解结核病症状的药用植物，并分析关于其有效性和安全性的科学报告。
在主要电子数据库中对东非用于结核病管理的药用植物进行了全面的文献检索。共检索到44份报告，并收集了药用植物各方面的数据，如植物学名、科、当地名称、使用部位、制备方法、功效、毒性和植物化学。数据汇总为百分比和频率，并以表格和图表形式呈现。
共鉴定出68科144属的195种植物。最常见的物种来自豆科（42.6%）、唇形科（19.1%）、菊科（16.2%）和大戟科（14.7%）。仅对36种药用植物（18.5%）进行了抗分枝杆菌活性筛选。其中，31种（86.1%）被报道具有生物活性，最低抑菌浓度范围为47至12500μg/ml。大多数测试的植物提取物被发现具有可接受的急性毒性特征，对正常哺乳动物细胞的细胞毒性浓度大于200μg/ml。最常报道的植物化学物质是黄酮类、萜类、生物碱、皂苷、强心苷和酚类。只有、和进一步进行了纯生物活性化合物的分离和表征。
东非有丰富多样的药用植物，据报道对结核病症状的管理有效。需要更多的验证研究来促进抗分枝杆菌药物的发现，并为草药使用的标准化提供证据。
