The inhabitants of western Sudan use traditional medicine for the treatment of various ailments due to lack of medical doctors and unaffordable prices of pharmaceutical products. The present study is the first documentation of the traditional plant knowledge on medicinal uses of plants by healers in Algoz (South Kordofan), Sudan. Ethnobotanical data were collected over a period from March to November 2015 using semi-structured interviews with 30 healers (24 male and 6 female) living in the investigated area. Quantitative indices such as use categories, use value (UV) and informant consensus factor (ICF) were intended to evaluate the importance of medicinal plant species. A total of 94 medicinal plants, which belong to 45 families and 81 genera, were recorded in the study area. The most represented families are Leguminosae with 20 species followed by Combretaceae (6 species), Rubiaceae (5 species) and Asteraceae (4 species). The reported species were belonging to herbs (43%), trees (28%), shrubs (22%), climbers (4%) and parasites (3%). Root and stem (21% each) were the most plant parts used. A majority of remedies are administered orally (67%) where infusion (36%) and maceration (32%) are the most used methods. The highest ICF (0.87) was reported for poisonous animal bites followed by urinary system diseases (0.89), blood system disorders (0.88) and gynaecological diseases (0.87). Anastatica hierochuntica, Ctenolepis cerasiformis, Echinops longifolius, Cleome gynandra, Maerua pseudopetalosa, Martynia annua, Oldenlandia uniflora, Opuntia ficus-indica, Solanum dubium, Sonchus cornutus, Tribulus terrestris and Drimia maritima were reported for the first time in this study. The number of medicinal plants reported in this paper reflects evidence that Algoz area had a high diversity of medicinal plants which will continue to play an important role in the healthcare system in the study area.

Abelmoschus esculentus okra as whole stalks was examined for its suitability for pulp and paper production. It’s, fiber dimensions, morphological and chemical characteristics were reported. The pulping trials with soda- Anthraquinone (AQ,) at different chemical charges. Application of 21% as NaOH with 0.1% AQ gave good results in degree of delignification, mechanical properties. Utilization of okra pulps and blender is recommended due to good pulp properties. Evaluation of general characteristics of okra stalks in terms of fiber dimensions morphological indices, chemical components, Soda-AQ cooking and to study their suitability for paper production. Okra Fiber dimension evaluation done after maceration with a mixture of 30% hydrogen peroxide and acetic acid (1:1) for core and bark parts separately and was carried out under microscope staining with aqueous safranin. The Soda-AQ cooks at different active alkali levels were calculated as NaOH on oven dry raw material. The fibers from okra stalks studied (core and bark) were in the range of hardwood fibers, with short fiber length, especially the core with more or less moderate walls, narrow lumen and fiber width. The fiber width of bark was medium –narrow with medium wall thickness. The ash content was rather high whereas the silica content was comparatively high The hot water extractives from okra stalks was (4.1%), cold water (0.4) ethanol/ cyclohexane (1.1), ethanol extractives (1.2%) and 1% NaOH (27.6%) were rather high. The cellulose (Kurschner-Hoffer) was (48.5%) The lignin content was (15.3%) which was relatively moderate. The use of 0.1% AQ enhanced the delignification in the three trials applied. The screened yield increase with increase of chemical dose applied while the rejects decrease. When 21% NaOH was applied, the screened yield was 32.2% with negligible amount of rejects, however with lower alkali charge 18% the screened yield was decreased to 28% with very low rejects 1.5%. on the other hand rejects were increased to 7% when 15% NaOH was applied with very low screened yield 19%.The pulps produced from okra soda-AQ are suitable for production of printing and writing papers and it is advisable to use them in blending due to good papermaking properties.

The present study aimed to investigate the physiochemical activities ofSenna occidentalis(Linn) roots and phytochemicals as insecticidal (ethyl acetate and methanol) and antidiabetic (ethanolic extract) activities. Physicochemical properties were carried out by using Association of Official Analytical Chemist methods; thin layer chromatography was carried out according to the Stahl method. Larvicidal activity and LD(50)were studied against the third instar ofCulex quinquefasciatusmosquito larvae to detect and extract toxicity. The ethanolic extracts of the roots were orally tested at the dose 200 mg/kg for the hypoglycemic effect on induced hyperglycemia in normal rats, assessed in the ethanol extract, and were compared with diabetic control and standards glibenclamide 10 mg/kg. Physiochemical parameters showed high rate in the nitrogen-free extract (69.6%), curd fiber (14.5%), crude proteins (8.15%), ether extract (3.75%), and both ash and moisture (2%), and high concentrations values were found in potassium (43 mg/l) followed by phosphorous (28.5 mg/l), calcium (15 mg/l), sodium (3.65 mg/l), and magnesium (0.145 mg/l). In this part, phytochemical compounds showed high amount of alkaloids, triterpene, flavonoids, tannins, sugars, and few amount of anthraquinone glycosides. Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) studies different colored phytochemical constituted with different Rf values. All the spots are colored under UV light, but some are localized colorless after spaying. The ethyl acetate (EtAc) extract showed eight spots, and the methanol (MeOH) extract showed thirteen spots. The larvicidal activity showed that the ethyl acetate extract was safe against mosquito larvae with an LD(50)value 1412.54 (p<0.05), and the methanol extract had moderate larvicidal activity against mosquito larvae with an LD(50)value 257.54 (p<0.05), while the ethanolic extract ofSenna occidentalis(L.) causes a favorable hypoglycemic activity when compared to control significant reduction by [53.15%, 32.87%, and 20.94%], respectively, as well as standard glibenclamide. Based on the various data of the physicochemical parameters, TLC spots, and phytochemical compounds ofSenna occidentalisroot, they could be used as references standards for manufacturing units ofSenna occidentalisroot larvicidal and antidiabetic drugs.

This study aims to utilize the pruned branches of Citrus limon in pulping with alkaline pulping methods and to determine the suitability of guar gum to improve the strength properties of pulps and limitations of cutting trees for environmental issues and utilization of lemon branches as horticultural residues. These branches’ physical properties exhibited high medium density and very low percentages of bark to wood ratio. The whole chemical components of these raw materials indicated the suitability to a pulp with alkaline cooking methods. In addition, alkaline sulfite anthraquinone with methanol methods gave excellent screened yield (60.1 %), negligible rejects, bleachable Kappa number 19.5, and best strength properties, especially tensile and strengths. Alkaline sulfite with anthraquinone gave excellent screened yield with a small percentage of rejects and bleachable Kappa number. On the other hand, soda cooking produced pulps with acceptable yield (41.9 %), rejects (3 %), and suitable strengths. The soda anthraquinone pulping methods produced pulp with good yields (56 - 59.7 %). Obviously, anthraquinone’s effect in preserving carbohydrates, specifically hemicelluloses, increases the yields and strengths. Guar gum improved pulps’ physical properties when added during beating with (0.25 % on oven-dry Soda-AQ pulps). It clears Citrus limon branches’ suitability with an age of 2 years in cooking with all alkaline pulping methods applied.