Health seeking behavior of people around the globe is affected by different socio-cultural and economic factors. In Ethiopia, people living in rural areas in particular, are noted for their use of medicinal plants as a major component of their health care option. This study was conducted to document ethnopharmacological information of the Hamer semi-pastoralists ethnic group in southwestern Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was carried out whereby information on demographic characteristics, prevalence of perceived illnesses, factors associated with preference of health care seeking options, medicinal plants used and hoarded as well as some healers’ socio-economic characteristics were collected using two sets of semi-structured questionnaires – one for household (HH) heads and the other for traditional healers supplemented by focus group discussions (FGDs). Households were selected using a cluster sampling followed by systematic sampling techniques; whereas healers and FGD participants were purposively selected with the assistance of local leaders and elders from the community. The study revealed that the use of traditional medicine among the Hamer ethnic group is very high. Females preferred traditional medicine more than males. The main reasons for this preference include effectiveness, low cost and ease of availability. Malaria (gebeze) was the most frequently occurring illness in the area identified by all FGD participants. A total of 60 different medicinal plants were reported [34 by HH respondents, 14 by traditional healers and 12 by both]. Fifty-one medicinal plants were fully identified, 3 at generic level and 6 have not yet been identified. It can be concluded that traditional medical practices, particularly herbal aspect, is widely used by the Hamer ethnic group, although health seeking behavior of the community is affected by different socio-economic and cultural factors.

The incidents of drug resistant microorganisms and the need of treatments for newly emerging pathogens are of great concern to the global community. Our ability to treat infectious diseases is dependent on the development of new pharmaceuticals, and one potential source being medicinal plants with traditional claims. The leaves of Aloe trigonantha L.C. Leach, an endemic Ethiopian plant, are locally used for the treatment of infectious and inflammatory diseases. This study explores the potential of the latex of this plant and compounds isolated thereof for their in vitro antibacterial and antifungal properties. Analytical RP-HPLC and silica gel preparative TLC were used for identification and isolation of active constituents, respectively. Characterization of the compounds was based on UV, IR, HR-ESIMS, 1H and 13C NMR, and 2D-NMR spectral assignments. Antimicrobial activity studies were carried out against 21 pathogenic bacterial and 4 fungal strains using the disk diffusion method. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were determined by the broth dilution method. A C-glycosylated chromone identified as aloesin, and three C-glycosylated anthrones characterized as 8-O-methy-7-hydroxyaloin A/B, aloin A/B and aloin-6’-O-acetate A/B were isolated. The latex and isolated compounds exhibited in vitro antibacterial activity against the tested pathogens. In some cases the activity of the isolated compounds (MIC = 10 μg/mL) was comparable with that of the standard drug ciprofloxacin, particularly against some of the Gram-negative bacterial strains tested. However, their activity towards the fungal pathogens tested was relatively weaker showing maximum activity against Candida albicans with MIC value of 400 μg/mL. The present findings can be used for further research aimed at the development of new antibacterial agents, and may also justify the ethnomedicinal claim of the plant for the treatment of infectious diseases.

Aloesin (1) and 7-O-methyl-6′-O-coumaroylaloesin (2) were isolated from the leaf latex of Aloe monticola Reynolds, and their structures determined on the basis of NMR and mass spectroscopic analyses. The antimicrobial activities of the isolated chromones were evaluated against 21 bacterial and 4 fungal strains. Both compounds displayed antibacterial and antifungal effects against most bacterial and fungal strains tested, but their action was more prominent against Salmonella typhi, Shigella dysentery and Staphylococcus aureus (MIC = 10 μg/ml). Acute toxicity tests on mice revealed that neither the latex nor the isolated compounds possess toxicity up to a dose of 2000 mg/kg, signifying an oral LD₅₀ greater than 2000 mg/kg. The results indicate that A. monticola possesses genuine in vitro antimicrobial effect attributed in full or in part to the presence of the isolated chromones in the latex.

Malaria is one of the three major global public health threats due to a wide spread resistance of the parasites to the standard antimalarial drugs. Considering this growing problem, the ethnomedicinal approach in the search for new antimalarial drugs from plant sources has proven to be more effective and inexpensive. The leaves of Aloe pulcherrima Gilbert and Sebsebe, an endemic Ethiopian plant, are locally used for the treatment of malaria and other infectious diseases. Application of the leaf latex of A. pulcherrima on preparative silica gel TLC led to the isolation of two C-glycosylated anthrones, identified as nataloin (1) and 7-hydroxyaloin (2) by spectroscopic techniques (UV, IR, ¹H- and ¹³C-NMR, HR-ESIMS). Both the latex and isolated compounds displayed antimalarial activity in a dose-independent manner using a four-day suppressive test, with the highest percent suppression of 56.2% achieved at 200 mg/kg/day for 2. The results indicate that both the leaf latex of A. pulcherrima and its two major constituents are endowed with antiplasmodial activities, which support the traditional use of the leaves of the plant for the treatment of malaria.

Daniel Bisrat and Chuleui Jung. J Ecol Environ 2022;46:. https://doi.org/10.5141/jee.21.00075

Small hive beetle (Aethina tumida Murray), indigenous to Africa, has spread to other parts of the world where has become a threat to the honeybee industry. In the present study, insecticidal properties (contact, fumigant, and repellent toxicities) of three main constituents derived from Trachyspermum ammi (L.) Sprague ex Turrill fruits essential oil were evaluated against adult small hive beetles under laboratory conditions. The Hydrodistillation of T. ammi fruits, grown in Ethiopia, yielded a pale yellow essential oil (3.5% v/w) with a strong aromatic odor. Analyses by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry identified twenty-two compounds that accounted for 98.68% of the total essential oil. The essential oil was dominated by monoterpenoids, comprising γ-terpinene (32.72%), p-cymene (27.92%), and thymol (24.36%). The essential oil showed strong contact and fumigation toxicities against the small hive beetle adults, with a LD₅₀ value of 66.64 µg/adult and a LC₅₀ value of 89.03 mg/L air, respectively. Among the main constituents, thymol was the most toxic component found in both contact (LD₅₀ = 41.79 µg/adult) and fumigation (LC₅₀ = 52.66 mg/L air) toxicities. The other two components, γ-terpinene and p-cymene, were less effective in both contact and fumigant toxicities testing. The results showed that T. ammi essential oil and thymol could serve as potential alternatives to synthetic insecticides for the control of small hive beetle adults.