Medicinal Plants Used for Treating Reproductive Health Care Problems in Cameroon, Central Africa. Approximately 80% of the African population uses traditional plants to deal with health problems, basically because of their easy accessibility and affordability. This study was carried out to document indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants used by traditional healers and elders in the treatment of reproductive health care in the Bamboutos Division of the West Region in Cameroon, Central Africa. The research methods used included semi–structured interviews and participative field observations. For the interviews, 70 knowledgeable respondents (40 traditional healers and 30 elders) were selected via purposive sampling. Voucher specimens were collected with the help of respondents, processed into the Cameroon National Herbarium in Yaoundé following standard methods, identified with the help of pertinent floras and taxonomic experts, and submitted to Department of Botany at the University of Dschang. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze and summarize ethnobotanical information obtained. Informant consensus factors (ICF) were used to elucidate the agreement among informants on the species to be used in the treatment within a category of illness. The results showed that a total of 70 plant species from 37 families (mostly of the Asteraceae [8 species], Euphorbiaceae [7], and Acanthaceae and Bignoniaceae [4 each]) are used in the treatment of 27 reproductive ailments, with the highest number of species (37) being used against venereal diseases, followed by female (29) and male infertility (21), respectively. Leaves (47.3%) were the most commonly harvested plant parts and the most common growth forms harvested were the herbs (45.7%), followed by shrubs (30%). Sixty percent of plant material was obtained from the wild ecosystems. Herbal remedies were mostly prepared in the form of decoction (66.2%) and were taken mainly orally. Informant consensus about usages of medicinal plants ranged from 0.5 to 1.0 with an average value of 0.91. It can be concluded that medicinal plants have played and will continue to play major roles in the management of reproductive healthcare in the study area.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s12231-016-9344-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

This study was undertaken to document how typhoid is traditionally treated in Bamboutos division. For this purpose thirty eight plants species were selected. These plants underwent phytochemical screening and antibacterial study using standard procedures. The antibacterial tests using agar well diffusion method and microdilution assay indicated that, all the thirty eight plant samples showed activity against S. typhi, while S. paratyphi A and S. paratyphi B reacted on fifteen and fourteen plants respectively. The highest zones of inhibition were obtained from Senna alata with diameter of 24, 22.5 and 20.5 mm against S. paratyphi A, S. paratyphi B and S. typhi respectively at 160 mg/ml concentration. The lowest MIC values 128 µg/ml was exhibited by the extract of Vitex doniana against Salmonella paratyphi A. Bactericidal activity was obtained by the extract of Carica papaya, Pseudarthria confertiflora, Moringa oleifera and Harungana madagascariensis. Antibacterial screened of Pseudartthria confertiflora was reported for the first time. Annona muricata, Laggera alata, Spathodea campanulata, Cordia platythyrsa, Carica papaya, Terminalia glaucescens and Pseudarthria confertiflora gave positive results for all secondary metabolites while other plants contained two to five metabolites. The presence of these secondary metabolites probably contributes to the antibacterial potential of these plants. This finding supported the uses of these plants for treatment of typhoid fever and other infectious diseases in the study area.

BackgroundMultidrug resistance (MDR) is a major hurdle for cancer treatment worldwide and accounts for chemotherapy failure in over 90% of patients with metastatic cancer. Evidence of the cytotoxicity of Cameroonian plants against cancer cell lines including MDR phenotypes is been intensively and progressively provided. The present work was therefore designed to evaluate the cytotoxicity of the methanol extracts of twenty-two Cameroonian medicinal plants against sensitive and MDR cancer cell lines.MethodsThe methanol maceration was used to obtain the crude plant extracts whilst the cytotoxicity of the studied extracts was determined using a resazurin reduction assay.ResultsA preliminary assay on leukemia CCRF-CEM cells at 40 μg/mL shows that six of the twenty plant extract were able to enhance less than 50% of the growth proliferation of CCRF-CEM cells. These include Crinum zeylanicum (32.22%), Entada abyssinica (34.67%), Elaoephorbia drupifera (35.05%), Dioscorea bulbifera (45.88%), Eremomastax speciosa (46.07%) and Polistigma thonningii (45.11%). Among these six plants, E. drupifera showed the best activity with IC50 values below or around 30 μg/mL against the nine tested cancer cell lines. The lowest IC50 value of 8.40 μg/mL was recorded with the extract of E. drupifera against MDA-MB231 breast cancer cell line. The IC50 values below 10 μg/mL were recorded with the extracts of E. drupifera against MDA-MB231 breast cancer cells, C. zeylanicum against HCT116 p53+/+ and HCT116p53-/- colon cancer cells and E. abyssinica against HCT116 p53+/+ cells.ConclusionThe results of the present study provide evidence of the cytotoxic potential of some Cameroonian medicinal plants and a baseline information for the potential use of Elaoephorbia drupifera in the treatment of sensitive and drug-resistant cancer cell lines.

Aims: Cancer is the second leading cause of death globally. Therefore, the knowledge on medicinal plants used to cure human cancer could be of great importance for their widespread use and scientific validation. The present study records information on anticancer plants in Boyo Division, in the western highland of Cameroon. Methods: Thirty traditional healers, were interviewed to document their know-how on the type of human cancer allegedly cured, the plant species used as well as their use pattern. Guided field walks were made to the collection sites for plant and its habitat characterization as well as herbarium voucher collection. Ethnobotanical quantitative tools were used to analyze and summarize collected data. Sustainability of harvest was assessed using a vulnerability index based on seven parameters.  Results: A total of 25 medicinal plants cited were identified as belonging to 13 families and 23 genera. The most represented families were Asteraceae (28%), Lamiaceae (16%), Fabaceae (12%) and Acanthaceae (8%). Out of the seven categories of cancer diseases reported, the highest number of plants species were reported to treat stomach, pancreas, liver, skin and breast cancers, with informant consensus factor (ICF) ranging from 0.79 to 0.82. Leaves (60%) and bark (20%) were the major plant parts used mostly in form of decoction (45.45%) and concoction (38.18%). The result of Relative frequency citations (RFCs) revealed that 9 of the 25 plants species cited were the most frequently used with fidelity levels ranging from 92% (Geniosporum rotundifolium and Ocimum tenuiflorum Aframomum melegueta and Entada abyssinica) to 100% (Coleus blumei, Ocimum gratissimum, Eremomastax speciosa, and Dichrocephala integrifolia). Six species were assessed as vulnerable (Vi ≥ 2), while two species were rated as highly vulnerable namely G. rotundifolium (Vi = 2.71) and E. abyssinica (Vi = 2.85). Conclusion: New traditionally effective anticancer plants were identified in the present study, some of which were already vulnerable for exploitation in their actual habitat. Plants with high ICF, RFCs and FL values should be subjected to further phytochemical and pharmacological investigations for scientific validation while those with high Vulnerability index should be recommended for participatory domestication by the main users.

Sustainable management of pastoral resources requires knowledge in terms of floristic diversity and productivity of the rangelands. The objective of the present study carried out in the Bamboutos Mountains was to assess the floristic diversity and carrying capacity of the natural pastures. Floristic inventory was done using the method of quadrat point aligned in 15 plots of 400 m². Aerial phytomass of herbaceous plants was measured by the full harvest method. A total of 74 species, including 09 woody plants belonging to 56 genera and 20 families were recorded. The number of taxa recorded in the plots varied from 11 to 36 species. Imperata cylindrica with a specific contribution of presence of 17.45% was the most abundant species in the rangeland. The species-richest families were Poaceae, Fabaceae, Asteraceae and Cyperaceae. The calculated pastoral value of the pasture was 56.21%. These pastures were dominated by phanerophytes (29.72%) and therophytes (24.32%). The forage productivity of the grazed area, estimated based on the regrowth biomass was 6498.57 kg DM/ha while the carrying capacity of the rangeland was 2.31 TLU/ha. These results showed that the fodder potential of the Bamboutos Mountains is enough diversified but remains under exploited.

COVID-19 is a severe acute respiratory syndrome-related corona-virus SARS-CoV-2, that constitutes a pandemic threat to global public health. Unfortunately, there are no specific available therapies. This research work presents the findings of an investigation on traditional Cameroonian remedies of respiratory tract infections, malaria and viral infections, and also recipes that could serve as a baseline for the prevention, alleviate symptoms, treatment and perhaps may help for the anti-COVID-19 drugs discovery. Data on the medicinal plants were collected from traditional healers, Cameroonian medicinal plants books, the internet, and in addition to our personal experience as researchers and herbalists. Details of 85 plant species used to manage these three mentioned diseases in Cameroon and their pharmacological properties are recorded. Due to their ethnomedicinal uses and pharmacological activities, twenty-eight (28) plant species and 13 recipes are suggested for COVID-19 prevention, alleviate symptoms, treatment and baseline for anti-COVID-19 drug discovery. Amongst the proposed plants we have the following, Curcuma longa, Azadirachta indica, Zingiber officinale, Allium sativum and Ocimum gratissimum which were reported to possess certain inhibition properties against COVID-19 protease.

B. costatum is a local species of great socio-economique importance whose flowers are consummed and commercialized in local and regional market. Despite its economical and social value in local communities, it is still in the wild stand in the Guinean Savannah Highlands of Cameroon. The objective of the study is to contribute to its domestication by root segments cuttings. Root system of the mother trees was carefully excavated and the root samples (0.5−1kg) for the carbohydrate analysis were collected monthly throughout the year. In addition, a total of 180 root segments cuttings (RSC) were collected from 20 parent trees of different diameters at breast height (dbh) (15-30 cm; 30.1-45 cm and > 45 cm) in «Gamba» and «Karna manga». The experimental design explorated was a split-plot with 03 replicates. The trial was conducted in a non mist polypropagator. The results reveal that among the carbohydrates evaluated, fructose decreased from the dry to the rainy seasons while soluble and total sugars move in inverse order. The first buds appear 08 weeks after planting. At the end of the essay, the highest budding rate (81.11±19.65%) was obtained in root segments cuttings from Karna manga against 68.33±34.88% in RSC from mother trees of dbh 30.1-45 cm. Regarding the origin of root segments cuttings by dbh of parent trees interaction, the budding rate varied significantly from 36.66±5.77% in RSC from mother trees of dbh 15.1-30 cm originated from Gamba to 100±0% in those from parent trees of the same dbh in Karna manga (0.0046 < 0.01). The average height of leafy shoots varied from 8.28±5.23 cm in RSC from Gamba to 11.91±7.35 cm in those from Karna manga. The rooting rate fluctuated from 3.33±2.53% in root segments cuttings from mother trees of dbh 30.1-45 cm and dbh > 45 cm originated respectively from Gamba and Karna manga to 50±26.45% in those from parent trees of dbh 15-30 cm from Karna manga. These results will help to elaborate appropriate domestication and conservation strategies of the species.

Reproductive diseases are conditions that negatively affects human reproductive systems in many countries. Indeed this study was carried out to analyse chemical constituents of some medicinal plants used to treat reproductive organs, diseases in Bamboutos division, West of Cameroon. 45 plants samples were collected from their natural habitats in some villages of the above cited division. Study was conducted according to standard procedures in the laboratory of Organic Chemistry and Natural Substances of the University of Dschang. Polyphenols were revealed in all screening medicinal plant extracts, while, flavonoids were found in most of the studied plant extracts except for those obtained from Dioscorea dumetorum. Triterpens were present in 40 plants, saponins and sterols were respectively found in 33 and 32 plants ; whereas, alkaloids were only present in 15 plants.This work showed that the plants used to alleviate human reproductive ailments in some locality of the West Region in Cameroon are rich in bioactive compounds. These compounds are known to manage human reproductive diseases. Therefore, this finding supported the uses of these plant species for the treatment of human reproductive diseases. Furthermore, appropriate conservation of such valuable medicinal plant species is required.