In many developing countries, community members depend on their local flora for treating diverse ailments including those affecting the respiratory system. This is often attributed to the high cost and limited access to health care facilities. This present study focused on the documentation of plant species used against cough associated with the respiratory diseases in Ede South Local Government Area of Osun State. The survey was conducted using semi-structured interviews among 100 participants. Information obtained was analyzed using different ethno-botanical indices including relative frequency of citation (RFC) and fidelity level (FL). A total of 87 plant species from 39 families, which was mostly represented by Fabaceae, were reported in the study area. Crinum jagus was the most popular plant used against cough and approximately 32% of the plants have been reported as cough remedies for the first time. However, some of the documented plants have been reported for the treatment of cough and related respiratory diseases in several countries. In terms of the life-form, trees constituted the highest proportion of the medicinal plants (37%), while leaves (36%) were the predominant plant part prescribed for cough. Decoction was the main method of preparing the plants, which were all administered orally. Approximately 63% of the plants were exclusively sourced from the wild. The current study revealed the richness and widespread use of plant species for managing cough associated with respiratory diseases in the study area. The generated inventory contributes to the expanding database of valuable plant resources with medicinal potential in Nigeria and Africa.

Traditional medicine is typically the most accessible primary healthcare for a large proportion of the people in Nigeria. However, its potential remains under-explored, especially with regards to their documentation. This research investigated and documented the use of medicinal plants in the management of various health conditions/diseases among local populations in Lagos State. This study was conducted in five (5) locations of Lagos State i.e., Alimosho, Badagry, Eti-Osa, and Epe (including Ijebu and Imota). Ethnobotanical information from 100 participants was obtained using semi-structured questionnaires. Frequency of citation (FC), relative frequency of citation (RFC), fidelity level (FL), and informant consensus factor (ICF) were used to assess the importance of plants utilised for various health conditions/diseases. We identified 183 plants from 61 plant families with the highest number (24) of plants belonging to Fabaceae. Based on the high FC, the top-five popular plants used for managing health conditions/diseases in the study areas were Mangifera indica (95%), Waltheria indica (93%), Zingiber officinale (87%), Alchornea cordifolia (83%) and Ipomoea involucrata (81%). Furthermore, Rauvolfia vomitoria, Urena lobata and Waltheria indica were recognised as the most adaptable plants, as they were used to treat five different health conditions/diseases. The most commonly used life-forms were herbs (34%) and woody species (shrubs; 30%, and trees; 22%). The most regularly used plant parts were leaves. The calculated RFC values for all medicinal plant species ranged from 0.01 to 0.95, while FL values ranged from 7.14 to 100%. We found 14 health conditions/diseases, with ICF values ranging from 0.88 to 0.95. Insomnia, insanity, convulsion, nervousness, and muscle relaxants had the lowest (ICF = 0.88) agreement, while malaria/fevers, stomach, and respiratory-related diseases had the most (ICF = 0.95) agreement. The documented therapeutic uses of the plants provide basic data for further research aimed at pharmacological and conservation studies of the most important flora existing in the study areas.

Background: A substantial number of drugs are being developed from plants for the treatment of various diseases. Lannea egregia (LE) is a woody perennial plant used traditionally in the management of skin disorders and wounds.Aim: To investigate the biological activities of different solvent extracts of LE bark.Settings: Fresh stem bark of Lannea egregia was collected from Itabo Lanlate, Oyo State, Nigeria. The authentication was done in Forest Herbarium, Ibadan (FHI), Nigeria. The biological activities of the air-dried sample were carried out in the Department of Pharmacognosy, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.Materials and methods: Powdered LE bark sample was extracted by gradient extraction. Phytochemical screening was performed on the extracts using standard procedure. In vitro antimicrobial study was performed on 14 strains of bacteria and 5 fungal strains at a concentration range of 25, 50, 75 and 100 mg/mL of the extract using ciprofloxacin and itraconazole as standard. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) and minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) were determined. The 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity and total phenolic content (TPC) of two active extracts were determined spectrophotometrically.Results: The phytochemical screening of LE revealed the presence of tannins, terpenoids, flavonoids, anthraquinones, saponins and alkaloids. The dichloromethane (DCM) extract exhibited the highest activity against all the bacterial strains as well as four of the fungal strains. The zones of inhibition (ZI) of bacteria ranged from 9.0 ± 2.0 to 24.6 ± 2.4 mm, MIC of 0.0008 to 12.5 mg/mL and MBC of 25 to 75 mg/mL, while ZI of the fungal strains ranged from 10.3 ± 4.6 to 18.0 ± 5.3 mm, MIC 0.391 – 0.781 and MFC of 50 mg/mL in all the strains. The TPC values of DCM and ethyl acetate (EtOAc) extracts were 1582.47 ± 6.69 and 1579.89 ± 12.77 µg GAE/mg and inhibitory antioxidant activity of 2.54 ± 0.58 and 2.44 ± 0.54, respectively.Conclusion: These findings provide scientific evidence to support the ethnomedicinal use of Lannea egregia bark for treating skin disorders and wounds.

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Aims: This study was designed to compare the extractable yield of Chrysophyllum albidum seed oil, the phytoconstituents, and physicochemical parameters with the commercially available vegetable oil, to ascertain their suitability for human consumption and industrial uses. Place and Duration of Study: Biomedicinal Research Centre, Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria in collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Chemistry Laboratory, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria, between October, 2018 to July, 2019. Methodology: The seeds were collected from two locations (a parent tree in the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN) and as well procured at Akesan market in Oyo town (Oyo) all in Oyo State, Nigeria. The experiments were executed adopting the standard procedures. The air-dried powdered C. albidum seed was cold macerated with analytical grade N-Hexane. The oils were purified using activated charcoal and qualitatively screened to ascertain the phytochemicals in them. Physico-chemical parameters were quantitatively determined following AOAC guidelines. Results: The results revealed that C. albidum is a low oil yielding seed especially when cold maceration was employed. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, anthraquinones, terpenoids, and cardiac glycosides in all the oils. Saponins were found only in the oil from the FRIN source. While tannins and flavonoids were absent in all the oils. The physico-chemical parameters revealed the ranges of 0.90 - 9.45 mgKOH/g (Acid value), 101.90 - 356.60 mgKOH/g (saponification value), 65.30 - 78.00 mg/g (iodine value), 101.00 - 348.50 (ester value), 2.93 - 6.21 (PH value), 0.787 - 0.900g/cm3 (Relative density) and 1.4590 - 1.6560 (Refractive index @280C). Conclusion: It can be deduced that there are disparities in the yield, phytoconstituents and the physico-chemicals of the oils used for this study. Further research is needed on the C. albidum oil to validate its edibility and affirm its medicinal uses.