Traditional Medicinal Uses, Phytoconstituents, Bioactivities, and Toxicities of Erythrina abyssinica Lam. ex DC. (Fabaceae): A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background. Many studies have been undertaken on the medicinal values of Erythrina abyssinica Lam. ex DC. (Fabaceae). The details, however, are highly fragmented in different journals, libraries, and other publication media. This study was therefore conducted to provide a comprehensive report on its ethnobotany, ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemicals, and the available pharmacological evidence supporting its efficacy and safety in traditional medicine. Method. We collected data using a PROSPERO registered systematic review protocol on the ethnobotany, phytochemistry, and ethnopharmacology of Erythrina abyssinica from 132 reports that were retrieved from electronic databases. Documented local names, morphology, growth habit and habitat, ethnomedicinal and nonmedicinal uses, diseases treated, parts used, method of preparation and administration, extraction and chemical identity of isolated compounds, and efficacy and toxicity of extracts and isolated compounds were captured. Numerical data were summarized into means, percentages, and frequencies and presented as graphs and tables. Results. Erythrina abyssinica is harvested by traditional herbal medicine practitioners in East, Central, and South African communities to prepare herbal remedies for various human and livestock ailments. These include bacterial and fungal infections, tuberculosis, malaria, HIV/AIDS, diarrhea, cancer, meningitis, inflammatory diseases, urinary tract infections, wounds, diabetes mellitus, and skin and soft tissue injuries. Different extracts and phytochemicals from parts of E. abyssinica have been scientifically proven to possess anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant, antiplasmodial, antiproliferative, antifungal, antimycobacterial, antidiarrheal, anti-HIV 1, antidiabetic, and antiobesity activities. This versatile pharmacological activity is due to the abundant flavonoids, alkaloids, and terpenoids present in its different parts. Conclusion. Erythrina abyssinica is an important ethnomedicinal plant in Africa harboring useful pharmacologically active phytochemicals against various diseases with significant efficacies and minimal toxicity to mammalian cells. Therefore, this plant should be conserved and its potential to provide novel molecules against diseases be explored further. Clinical trials that evaluate the efficacy and safety of extracts and isolated compounds from E. abyssinica are recommended.

Ethnoveterinary botanical survey of medicinal plants used in Pashto, Punjabi and Saraiki communities of Southwest Pakistan

“…Based on the obtained results for each family in terms of use reports, it is possible to deduce that the plants in these families may contain some specific pharmacologically active chemicals/secondary metabolites that make them useful for treating a variety of disorders. Therefore, members of all these plant families, especially Asteraceae and Fabaceae as well as other families have worth to investigate the chemical constituents and pharmacologically for the discovery of new ethnoveterinary drugs (Abdalla and Zidorn, 2020; Koc et al., 2015; Obakiro et al., 2021; Surendran et al., 2021)…”

X-ray Structure Determination, Antioxidant Voltammetry Studies of Butein and 2′,4′-Dihydroxy-3,4-dimethoxychalcone. Computational Studies of 4 Structurally Related 2′,4′-diOH Chalcones to Examine Their Antimalarial Activity by Binding to Falcipain-2

“…In the fields of medicinal chemistry and pharmaceutical sciences, chalcones are widely known and used as templates for the synthesis of drugs [12]. The major classes of falcipain-2 inhibitors are peptides, closely followed by isoquinolines, thiosemicarbazones, and chalcones [23].…”

“…In particular, Erythrina abyssinica, a leguminous tree that is native to East Africa but is also found in Central and South Africa, has been comprehensively studied and shown to contain bioactive compounds which confer to the plant its many therapeutic properties such as its moderate to high antimicrobial and antimalarial activities [12]. The most frequently used medicinal parts of the E. abyssinica plant are the stem bark and the roots, which are usually consumed via infusions, powder, pastes, or direct chewing [12]. Herbal preparations from the E. abyssinica plant are used to treat a wide variety of ailments including cancer, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, obesity, Type II diabetes, and malaria amongst many others [12].…”

“…The most frequently used medicinal parts of the E. abyssinica plant are the stem bark and the roots, which are usually consumed via infusions, powder, pastes, or direct chewing [12]. Herbal preparations from the E. abyssinica plant are used to treat a wide variety of ailments including cancer, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, obesity, Type II diabetes, and malaria amongst many others [12]. Specifically, the extract from the stem bark of E. abyssinica has been demonstrated to have moderate to high antimalarial activity due to the antiplasmodial properties of two of its chemical constituents, 5-Prenylbutein and Homobutein [13,14].…”

Intraspecific Variation of Phytochemicals, Antioxidant, and Antibacterial Activities of Different Solvent Extracts of Albizia coriaria Leaves from Some Agroecological Zones of Uganda

“…Qualitative phytochemical screening of medicinal plants informs the need and choice for their elaborate phytochemical analysis and/or pharmacological evaluation [91,92]. Classical phytochemical screening of the different solvent extracts of A. coriaria leaves revealed the presence of several secondary metabolites including alkaloids, flavonoids, cardiac glycosides, phenols, saponins, tannins, and terpenes as shown in Table 2.…”