ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

TABLE OF CONTENT

TITLE PAGE

CERTIFICATION

DEDICATION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE – INTRODUCTION

1. GENERAL INTRODUCTION ON A MEDICINAL PLANT

CHAPTER TWO – LITERATURE REVIEW

• PLANT DESCRIPTION [SCIENTIFIC AND NATIVE NAME]
• AFRICAN PEACH[NAUCLEA LATIFOLIA] AS A MEDICINAL PLANT
• PHYTOCHEMICALS
• SOXHLET EXTRACTION

CHAPTER THREE – MATERIALS AND METHODS

• COLLECTION OF PLANT MATERIAL
• PREPARATION AND MATERIALS USED FOR EXTRACTION
• PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING

CHAPTER FOUR – RESULT AND DISCUSSION

CONCLUSION

REFERENCE

ABSTRACT

Methanolic extracts of leaves of the indigenous medicinal plant Nauclea latifolia (Rubiaceae), commonly called the African peach, is a plant widely used in folk medicine in different regions of Africa for treating a variety of illnesses including malaria, jaundice, diarrhea, hypertension, and tuberculosis treatment. Phytochemical screening of the different parts of the plant confirmed the presence of metabolites like saponins, alkaloids, glycosides, tannins, flavonoids and anthraquinones. Steroids were absent in all plant parts. This invariably confirms the folkloric usage of the various plant parts in the treatment of the listed diseases with careful selection of extracting solvent.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Medicinal plants have been the mainstay of traditional herbal medicine amongst rural dwellers worldwide since antiquity to date. The therapeutic use of plants certainly goes back to the Sumerian and the Akkadian civilizations in about the third millennium BC. Hippocrates (ca. 460–377 BC), one of the ancient authors who described medicinal natural products of plant and animal origins, listed approximately 400 different plant species for medicinal purposes. Natural products have been an integral part of the ancient traditional medicine systems, e.g. Chinese, Ayurvedic and Egyptian (Sarker & Nahar, 2007). Over the years they have assumed a very central stage in modern civilization as natural source of chemotherapy as well as amongst scientist in search for alternative sources of drugs.  About 3.4 billion people in the developing world depend on plant-based traditional medicines. This represents about 88 per cent of the world’s inhabitants, who rely mainly on traditional medicine for their primary health care. According to the World Health Organization, a medicinal plant is any plant which, in one or more of its organs, contains substances that can be used for therapeutic purposes, or which are precursors for chemo-pharmaceutical semi synthesis. Such a plant will have its parts including leaves, roots, rhizomes, stems, barks, flowers, fruits, grains or seeds, employed in the control or treatment of a disease condition and therefore contains chemical components that are medically active. These non-nutrient plant chemical compounds or bioactive components are often referred to as phytochemicals (‘phyto-‘from Greek – phyto meaning ‘plant’) or phytoconstituents and are responsible for protecting the plant against microbial infections or infestations by pests (Abo et al., 1991; Liu, 2004; Nweze et al., 2004; Doughari et al., 2009). The study of natural products on the other hand is called phytochemistry. Phytochemicals have been isolated and characterized from fruits such as grapes and apples, vegetables such as broccoli and onion, spices such as turmeric, beverages such as green tea and red wine, as well as many other sources (Doughari & Obidah, 2008; Doughari et al., 2009).

The science of application of these indigenous or local medicinal remedies including plants for treatment of diseases is currently called ethno pharmacology but the practice dates back since antiquity. Ethno pharmacology has been the mainstay of traditional medicines theentire world and currently is being integrated into mainstream medicine. Different catalogues including De Materia Medica, Historia Plantarum, Species Plantarum have been variously published in attempt to provide scientific information on the medicinal uses of plants. The types of plants and methods of application vary from locality to locality with 80% of rural dwellers relying on them as means of treating various diseases. For example, the use of bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) and cranberry juice (Vaccinium macrocarpon) to treat urinary tract infections is reported in different manuals of phytotherapy, while species such as lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), garlic (Allium sativum) and tee tree (Melaleuca alternifolia) are described as broad-spectrum antimicrobial agents (Heinrich et al., 2004). A single plant may be used for the treatment of various disease conditions depending on the community. Several ailments including fever, asthma, constipation, esophageal cancer and hypertension have been treated with traditional medicinal plants (Cousins & Huffman, 2002; Saganuwan, 2010). The plants are applied in different forms such as poultices, concoctions of different plant mixtures, infusions as teas or tinctures or as component mixtures in porridges and soups administered in different ways including oral, nasal (smoking, snoffing or steaming), topical (lotions, oils or creams), bathing or rectal (enemas). Different plant parts and components (roots, leaves, stem barks, flowers or their combinations, essential oils) have been employed in the treatment of infectious pathologies in the respiratory system, urinary tract, gastrointestinal and biliary systems, as well as on the skin (Rojas et al., 2001; R´ıos & Recio, 2005; Adekunle  & Adekunle, 2009).

The science of application of these indigenous or local medicinal remedies including plants for treatment of diseases is currently called ethno pharmacology but the practice dates back since antiquity. Ethno pharmacology has been the mainstay of traditional medicines theentire world and currently is being integrated into mainstream medicine. Different catalogues including De Materia Medica, Historia Plantarum, Species Plantarum have been variously published in attempt to provide scientific information on the medicinal uses of plants. The types of plants and methods of application vary from locality to locality with 80% of rural dwellers relying on them as means of treating various diseases. For example, the use of bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) and cranberry juice (Vaccinium macrocarpon) to treat urinary tract infections is reported in different manuals of phytotherapy, while species such as lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), garlic (Allium sativum) and tee tree (Melaleuca alternifolia) are described as broad-spectrum antimicrobial agents (Heinrich et al., 2004). A single plant may be used for the treatment of various disease conditions depending on the community. Several ailments including fever, asthma, constipation, esophageal cancer and hypertension have been treated with traditional medicinal plants (Cousins & Huffman, 2002; Saganuwan, 2010). The plants are applied in different forms such as poultices, concoctions of different plant mixtures, infusions as teas or tinctures or as component mixtures in porridges and soups administered in different ways including oral, nasal (smoking, snoffing or steaming), topical (lotions, oils or creams), bathing or rectal (enemas). Different plant parts and components (roots, leaves, stem barks, flowers or their combinations, essential oils) have been employed in the treatment of infectious pathologies in the respiratory system, urinary tract, gastrointestinal and biliary systems, as well as on the skin (Rojas et al., 2001; R´ıos & Recio, 2005; Adekunle  & Adekunle, 2009).