Herbal drugs from Sudan: Traditional uses and phytoconstituents

Abstract

Sudan folklore medicine is characterized by a unique combination of Islamic, Arabic, and African cultures. In poor communities, traditional medicine has remained as the most reasonable source of treatment of several diseases and microbial infections. Although the traditional medicine is accepted in Sudan, to date there is no updated review available, which focuses on most effective and frequently used Sudanese medicinal plants. Thus, this review aims to summarize the published information on the ethnobotanical uses of medicinal plants from Sudan, preparation methods, phytochemistry, and ethnopharmacology. The collected data demonstrate that Sudanese medicinal plants have been reported to possess a wide range of traditional medicinal uses including different microbial infections, gastrointestinal disorders, malaria, diabetes, rheumatic pain, respiratory system disorders, jaundice, urinary system inflammations, wounds, cancer, and different microbial infections. In most cases, the pharmacological studies were in agreement with traditional uses. Moreover, several bioactive compounds such as flavonoids, saponins, alkaloids, steroids, terpenes, tannins, fatty acids, and essential oils have been identified as active constituents. Although this review demonstrates the importance of ethnomedicine medicines in the treatment of several diseases in Sudan, further researches to validate the therapeutic uses and safety of these plants through phytochemical screening, different biological activity assays, and toxicological studies are still needed.

Acetyleugenol from <em>Acacia nilotica</em> (L.) exhibits a strong antibacterial activity and its phenyl and indole analogs show a promising anti-TB potential

“…Therefore, fraction I was selected for the determination of the MIC and MBC, which further confirmed the antibacterial activity of the fraction (Table 2). These strong antibacterial activities agree well with previous reports on A. nilotica (L.) which can be attributed to the presence of several active phytochemicals in the different parts of A. nilotica (L.) such as flavonoids, alkaloids, terpenes and others active ingredients [19,22,23]. To elucidate the chemical structure and properties of the active ingredient in fraction I; GC-MS, NMR spectroscopy, FTIR and UV-visible spectroscopy were applied.…”

“…A. nilotica (L.) is a medicinal plant that is well-known for its applications in the traditional medicines and has been used extensively to treat various respiratory diseases and other infectious diseases [19][20][21]. Here, we applied bioactivity guided approach to justify the wide-spread application of A. nilotica (L.) by conducting systematic phytochemical analysis on the leaves and tested its antimicrobial activity against several pathogenic bacteria including E. coli, K. pneumoniae, Proteus sp., P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, S. typhi and S. pneumonia ( Figure S1).…”

“…For example, in South Africa alone there are over 300 medicinal plants, with ~6% species belong to the family Fabaceae, that have been used in remedies of various respiratory infections [18]. The medicinal plant Acacia nilotica (L.)-native to Sudan-from to the family Fabaceae is well-known for its medicinal applications in the treatment of various respiratory system diseases and other diseases including malaria and Hepatitis C virus as well as wound healing and disinfection [19][20][21]. A. nilotica (L.) is rich with several groups of active phytochemical constituents including alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins and saponins, gallic acid, kaempferol, umbelliferone, and niloticane [22][23][24].…”

Ethnobotanical investigation on medicinal plants used against human ailments in Erkowit and Sinkat areas, Eastern Sudan

“…Consequent to centuries of folklore medicine and empirical knowledge, herbal medicine constitutes the main treatment for a high percentage of the population, significant proportion of it is nomadic. In addition, by virtue of economic factors and those in nomadic lifestyle, most of the population has limited access to standard mainstream medical care (Karar and Kuhnert 2017;Issa et al 2018).…”

Infusions of Herbal Blends as Promising Sources of Phenolic Compounds and Bioactive Properties

“…These plants have been used since ancient times for their countless benefits, being associated with health-promoting properties [2,3]. Conventionally prepared as an infusion, decoction, or by maceration (also used for culinary purposes due to their fragrance and flavor), these herbs can be blended in different combinations of leaves, roots, barks, stems, and flowers, among other plant materials [4]. One of the botanical families containing an enormous range of species most commonly consumed as herbal tea is the Lamiaceae family, which brings together an enormous range of plants (e.g., Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Thymus mastichina L.) that have several recognized bioactive properties and beneficial health effects [5][6][7].…”