NIGERIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS WITH ANALGESIC AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY POTENTIALS
FABIAN IFEANYI EZE 1,* , PHILIP FELIX UZOR1 , BONAVENTURE CHINONSO OBI2,* and PATIENCE OGOAMAKA OSADEBE1
1. Department of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, University of Nigeria Nsukka, 410001, Nigeria.
2. Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Nigeria Nsukka, 410001, Nigeria.
Afr. J Pharm Res Dev; Volume 11(2): 165-188 ; 2019
ABSTRACT
Medicinal plants with analgesic and anti-inflammatory potentials abound in Nigeria and yet inflammatory disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis and haemorrhoids, continue to torment the populace in Nigeria and other developing countries. It is well documented that medicinal plants contain a vast array of bioactive compounds with different biological properties. Interestingly, studies underlying the biological effects of several medicinal plants in Nigeria have been elucidated. This report constitutes an updated review of 154 Nigerian medicinal plants, used locally and reported from the year 2000 to 2019, with analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities to motivate researchers towards exhaustive studies on them so that the active principles can be isolated and characterized. The chemical structures of some isolated active compounds have been given. The local names of each plant in the three Nigerian major languages have been included for easy identification by local users and researchers. The in vitro and in vivo study models for analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities used are also incorporated for critical evaluation and comparison.
Email of correspondence:fabian.eze@unn.edu.ng bonaventure.obi@unn.edu.ng
KEYWORDS: Medicinal plants; Anti-inflammatory; Analgesic; Isolated compounds.