Abstract
The quality of herbal medicine can be affected by environmental conditions where by the medicinal plants are grown or collected, the area where they are dried and processed, storage conditions, transport conditions and manufacturing processes at the point of production. The study aimed to determine the quality of heavy metals, aflatoxins and microbial contaminants of Artemisia afra leaves powder used as herbal medicine processed at the Institute of Traditional Medicine of the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS). Artemisia afra leaves powder was obtained from The Institute of Traditional Medicine (ITM) in Tanzania where it is processed and packed as Fivisia. Microbial contaminants were analyzed by using plate count method for moulds and Shigella spp. while Most Probable Number (MPN) method used for determination of E. coli; Heavy metals were analyzed using; Inductively Couple Plasma – Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) and aflatoxin analysis was done using High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-MS). The data were tabulated, expressed in mean±S. D and presented in graphs and compared to WHO guidelines. The quantity of molds was between 1.1× 103 – 1.2× 103 CFU/g which is below the legal limit according to WHO of maximum of 105 CFU/g, none of the samples were contaminated with E. coli or Shigellas sp. Levels of heavy metals were within the permissible limit for consumed herbal product according to WHO standard guidelines; Chromium 1.69 ± 0.08 ppm, Lead 0.22 ± 0.01, Cadmium 0.08 ± 0.01, Mercury 0.15± 0.08 and Arsenic 0.04 ± 0.02. All samples were found below the detection limit for aflatoxin B1, B2, G1 and G2. The Artemisia afra leaves powder processed and packed as Fivisia at the Institute of Traditional Medicine; Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) is safe for human consumption based on the quality parameters that have been studied.
Highlights
The results of heavy metals observed to be below the World Health Organization (WHO) limit for herbal medicines
Results obtained by High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-MS) aflatoxin analysis shows that all five samples of Artemisia afra leaves powder were found free from aflatoxin B1, B2, G1 and G2 but the spiked samples as expected revealed the presence of the respective aflatoxins
In summary the results obtained in the assessment of herbal medicine, Artemisia afra leaves powder, regarding the microbial contaminants as well as heavy metals have indicated that they were below the legal limit set by WHO
Summary
They are considered to be safe due to their long time use in health care. In Africa, people use herbal medicine to symbolize a way of life (culture), they consider them to be very effective and less harmful than western drugs [2]. The World is witnessing increased public interest and acceptance of herbal medicine in both developing and developed countries. The increased use of herbal medicine is associated to toxicity and side effects of Science Journal of Chemistry 2020; 8(5): 119-123 allopathic medicine [3]. The presence of different components / ingredients in the preparation of herbal medicine, makes the assessment of batch to batch to be very important since the variation start from the collection of raw materials [4]. The regulatory Authorities have the responsibilities to ensure purity, safety, potency and efficacy according to the standard guidelines
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