Abstract
West Africa is one of the regions in Africa with the highest levels of malaria transmission a descriptive study was carried out to inventorise the medicinal plants traditionally used against malaria by traditional therapists in five malaria endemic areas of the Segou region, in Mali. Sixty-five traditional therapists were randomly selected to be part of the study. Questions were posed using semi-structured interviews, which solicited information on species used, plant organs used, as well as methods of preparation and routes of administration of decoctions. Results indicate that 69 species distributed over 27 families are used to treat malaria. The most represented families are Fabaceae (24.63%), Combretaceae (13.04%), Rubiaceae (7.24%) and Meliaceae (5.79%). The most cited species are Argemone mexicana (CF=0.78), Combretum micranthum (CF=0.84), Conocarpus biocarpa (CF=0.70), Gardenia sokotensis (CF=0.75) and Mitragyna inermis (CF=0.81). The recipe mostly involves leaves (82.43%), with the decoctions mainly taken orally. Key words: Antimalarial plants, ethnobotanical survey, Segou, Mali.
Highlights
The number of malaria cases is estimated at 228 million in 2018, against 251 million in 2010 and 231 million in 2017
Combretum micranthum is an important medicinal plant in West Africa known for the moderate antiplasmodial activity of its leaves (Karou et al, 2003; Ancolio et al, 2002; Benoit et al, 1996)
To support the sustainable harvest of good quality medicinal plants in ways that respect and promote the conservation of medicinal plants and the environment in general, our study suggests the establishment of a support program for traditional therapists
Summary
The number of malaria cases is estimated at 228 million in 2018, against 251 million in 2010 and 231 million in 2017. Most cases (213 million or 93%) were recorded in 2018 in the African region (WHO, 2019). The estimated number of malaria-related deaths was 405,000 in 2018. The Africa region alone accounted for 94% of malaria-related deaths worldwide in 2018. Children under 5 years are the most vulnerable to malaria.
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