Ethnobotanicalsurvey and Preliminary Phytochemical Evaluation Of

Full Length Research Paper

Ethnobotanical survey of plants used in the management of fertility and preliminary phytochemical evaluation of Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench

J. S. Ashidi1*, E. A. Olaosho1 and A. E. Ayodele2

1Department of Plant Science and Applied Zoology, OlabisiOnabanjo University Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, Nigeria. 2Department of Botany, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.

Accepted 14 August, 2013

The rise and fall in fertility level remain a serious concern in economic planning nations. In spite of concerted efforts of governmental and non-governmental organization to control birth through campaign and provision of safe sex devices, yet not much success has been recorded. There is dearth of information on plants traditionally used for fertility regulation in literature. In this study an ethnobotanical survey of plants used in the management of fertility was conducted across Ago-Iwoye and Oru areas of Ijebu-North Local Government, Ogun State, Nigeria. From the survey, 30 plant species which belong to 20 families were found to be used frequently by the indigenes of the areas. Most of the plants encountered (16.7%) belonged to the family Euphorbiaceae. Phytochemical evaluation of the leaves of Abelmoschus esculentus, the most prominent in the recipes indicated the presence of cardiac glycosides, flavonoids, phenolics, saponins and tannins in high concentrations while alkaloids, anthraquinones and cardenolides were absent. Moreover, the roots of A. esculentus showed high concentration of flavonoid compounds such as phenolics and saponins which were present in low concentrations while alkaloids, anthraquinones, cardenolides, cardiac glycosides and tannins were absent.

Key words: Ethnobotanical survey, fertility, phytochemical evaluation.

INTRODUCTION

Ethnobotany and ethnomedical studies are today Fertility is the most important aspect of human life, recognized as the most viable method of identifying new which is not only an expression of miracle and mystery, medicinal plants or refocusing on those earlier reported but directly has an effect on the future of living organisms for bioactive constituents. Ethnobotanical survey has (Hoffman, 2012). The earth’s population reached seven been found to be one of the reliable approaches to drug billion in October, 2011. This global milestone is both a discovery (Fabricant and Farnsworth, 2001). Thus, it is great opportunity and a challenge. Although, people are remarkable to note that most of the drugs derived or living longer and healthier lives and couples worldwide originally isolated from higher plants were discovered in are choosing to have fewer children, yet huge disparity ethnobotanical survey around the world (Thirumalai et al., persists. The current growth rate is adding about 78 2009). Several active compounds have been discovered million more people every year (United Nations, 2010). from plants on the basis of ethnobotanical information Poor reproductive health is the leading cause of death and used directly as drugs (Carney et al., 1999). and disability among women of 15 to 49 years in develop-

*Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]. Tel: +2348056953078. Ashidi et al. 165

ing countries (World Bank, 2011). Infection associated Extraction of plant with unsafe abortion is another leading cause of infertility in Africa (Rosenfield, 1994). Abortion is not permitted The leaves and roots of A. esculentus were air dried at room temperature (20°C), oven dried (Gallenkamp hot box oven, under the law in many African countries including Nigeria. England) at 40°C, pulverized and stored in air tight container. About Consequently, women with unwanted pregnancies 300 and 400 g of the roots and leaves of A. esculentus was frequently resort to self-induced abortions or abortions macerated in 3000 and 3500 ml of ethanol (absolute), respectively done improperly under unhygienic conditions, leading to and stirred for 10 min for five consecutive days at room high rates of infections (Etuk, 2009). The current issues temperature. The plant materials, leaves and roots of A. esculentus were filtered using filter paper and the extract was concentrated on fertility with the trend in global population have using a water bath and a rotary evaporator (Buchirotavapor R110) proffered little or no solution to reproductive health, at 75°C. because the economic cost of maintaining reproductive health is high (United Nations, 2012). However, the use of natural products as alternative Phytochemical screening therapy is common in countries with populations that do Phytochemical screening was carried out on the leaves and roots of not have access to scientific medical assistance. Plants A. esculentus to test for alkaloids, anthraquinone glycosides, and their extracts are used popularly for fertility control, cardiac glycosides, flavonoids, saponins and tannins using and for producing temporary sterility, possibly by standard protocols according to Sofowora (1993), Harborne (1992) interfering with embryonic implantation. Several plants and Trease and Evans(2002). have been confirmed as antifertility, abortive, uterine stimulant, estrogenic or cytotoxic agents in animals and RESULTS humans (Farnsworth et al., 1975). Besides, research has shown that some medicinal and highly nutritive plants Table 1 lists the 30 plant species documented for the when taken in diet for their known properties have management of fertility in the study area. The species accidental effects on the sex hormones of the individual belong to 20 different families (Table 2). The family ingesting it (Williamson et al., 1996). The very recent is Euphorbiaceae had the highest number of plants (5 or the work of Erhabor et al. (2013) who reported the use of 16.7%), followed by the Compositae (3 or 9.9%), thirty one medicinal plants commonly used by Ifa Nkari Cucurbitaceae (3 or 9.9%), Melastomataceae (2 or 6.7%) people of Akwa-Ibom State, Nigeria in the management and Caesalpiniaceae (2 or 6.7%). The rest of the families of male infertility. had 1 or 3.3% occurrence (Table 3). The aim of this study was to document ethnobotanical information on plants used in the management of fertility and to evaluate the phytochemicals present in the leaves DISCUSSION and roots of Abelmoschus nesculentus (L.) Moench which was the most prominent plant in the recipes Indigenous people have a vast knowledge on medicinal obtained. plants and there is a need to document this knowledge

for continuity and discovery of new drugs. Fertility is the

MATERIALS AND METHODS most important aspect of human life, which is not only an expression of miracle and mystery but directly have an Ethnobotanical survey effect on the future of living organisms (Hoffman, 2012); hence, the concept of fertility regulation is not a new one. This survey was carried out across Ago-Iwoye and Oru in Ijebu- The use of plants as abortifacients, emmenagogues, and North Local Government, Ogun State, Nigeria (6°56’N 3°48’E to as local contraceptives had been known and to some 7°00’N 4°00’E). A semi structured questionnaire was used to gather information on plants commonly used in the management of fertility extent documented by the ancient physicians (Rodrigues, in these areas. Relevant information on the plants, parts used, 2007). Different plants of medicinal value are found to mode of preparation, mode of administration and precautions were interfere with the different stages of reproduction. obtained from the herbal practitioners. The questionnaire was The present study recorded 30 plants used by the administered to twenty traditional healers with notable records of natives of Ago-Iwoye and Oru areas of Ijebu North Local success and good patronage in the herbal practice in the study area. Government in Ogun State, Nigeria. As far as we could ascertain, nineteen (19) of the plants have not been previously reported for abortifacient effect in women just Collection of plant as eleven (11) have been reported and investigated for anti fertility effect in men and women. Fresh leaves and roots of A. esculentus were collected in August Significant findings in this study suggest the 2012 from commercial farms. The plant was identified and abortifacient properties of the roots and leaves of A. authenticated at the Elikaf Herbarium of the Department of Plant Science and Applied Zoology, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago- esculentus contrary to the deleterious effect of the Iwoye, Ogun State, Nigeria, and the voucher specimen was also aqueous fruit extract of A. esculentus on some male kept and was allocated EHA 00323. reproductive parameters in Sprague Dawley rats 166 J. Pharmacognosy Phytother.

Table 1. Plants used in the management of fertility in Ago Iwoye and Oru areas of Ogun State, Nigeria.

S/N Taxon Family Common/ local names Part used Recipe/Dosage Reported anti-fertility activity Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Leaves or roots are pulverized and mixed This is also reported by Olatunji- 1 Malvaceae Gumbo, Ila, lady’s finger Leaves, roots Moench with 5 ml of water; administered orally once Bello et al. (2009). Leaves are finely powdered and mixed with This is also reported by Lemonica 2 Acanthospermum hispidum DC. Compositae Dagunro Leaves 10 ml of water; two full tablespoons are and Alvarenga (1994). taken once Decoction is prepared by boiling the roots This is also reported by Babalola 3 Baphia nitida Lodd. Papilionaceae Irosun Roots with potash (1 g); one full tablespoon is (2009). administered once 5 ml of water is mixed with fine powder of No reference found to confirm this 4 Bauhinia rubescens Pers. Caesalpiniaceae Jinga Roots the roots; half tablespoon is administered survey finding. once The leaves are boiled with lime; onefull No reference found to confirm this 5 Bridelia micrantha (Hochst) Baill. Phyllantaceae Asa, Isa Leaves tablespoon is administered once survey finding. 5 ml water is mixed with fine powder of the This is also reported by Priyaet al. Roots of the 6 Carica papaya L. Caricaceae Pawpaw, papaya, Ibepe roots; one full tablespoon is administered (2012) and Gupta and Sharma male pawpaw orally once (2006) Dried and pulverized roots is mixed with 5 ml Chromolaena odorata (L.) King of water; one full tablespoon is administered No reference found to confirm this 7 Compositae Akintola, siam weed Roots and Robinson once or a pinch of the powder infusion can survey finding. be administered once A fresh extract of the leaves is prepared with potash (1 g) or dried and pulverized roots are mixed with 5 ml of water and potash or Citrus aurantifolia Christm and Roots, leaves, No reference found to confirm this 8 Rutaceae Lime, osanwewe the juice of the fruit is extracted and mixed Panzer fruit juice survey finding. with potash; one full tablespoon of the leaves, roots or fruit juice is administered orally once Infusion is prepared by soaking the fruit in This is also reported by Chaturredi 9 Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad. Cucurbitaceae Egusibaara Fruit alcohol mixed with potash (1 g); one full and Dixit (1997) tablespoon is administered orally once Decoction of the seeds; half full tablespoon This is also reported by 10 Croton penduliflorus Hutch. Euphorbiaceae Aworoso Seeds is administered orally once Aladesanmi et al. (2007) A fresh extract of the leaves is prepared by crushing or pounding; one full tablespoon of No reference found to confirm this 11 Croton zambesicus Mull. Arg. Euphorbiaceae Ajekobale Leaves the extracted juice is administered orally survey finding. once. Seeds are pulverized, dried and molded into Egusiaije, paddy melon, No reference found to confirm this 12 Cucumis myriocarpus Naudin. Cucurbitaceae Seeds small circles; administered anally by placing prickly paddy melon survey finding. the molded circles in the uterine cavity. A fresh extract of the leaves is prepared by crushing or pounding; one full tablespoon of No reference found to confirm this 13 Dissotis rotundifolia (Sm.) Triana Melastomataceae Awede Leaves the extracted juice is administered thrice a survey finding. day for 1 day. Ashidi et al. 167

Table 1. Contd.

Half tablespoon full of dried and pulverized roots is dissolved in 10 ml of water; one full tablespoon No reference found to confirm this 14 Eleusine indica (L.) Poaceae Gbegi, stubborn grass Roots is administered orally once or a pinch of the survey finding. powdered infusion is swallowed with water. Seeds are finely powdered; three-quarters of a tablespoon is administered orally once or This is also reported by Akpantah et al. 15 Garcinia kola Heckel Guttiferae Orogbo Seeds dissolved in 10 ml of water; one full tablespoon is (2005). administered orally once. Infusion is prepared from the pulverized root bark No reference found to confirm this 16 Glyphae brevis Spreng Tiliaceae Atori Rootbark, leaves or leaves; two full tablespoons are administered survey finding. orally once. Stem bark is finely powdered and dissolved in No reference found to confirm this 17 Gomphrena globosa L. Amaranthaceae Obo Stem bark 10ml of water; two full tablespoons are survey finding. administered orally once. Roots are pulverized and dissolved in 10ml of No reference found to confirm this 18 Icacinia trichantha Oliv. Icacinaceae Gbegbe Roots water; two full tablespoons are administered orally survey finding. once. A fresh extract of the leaves is prepared by No reference found to confirm this 19 Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam. Convolvulaceae Odunkun, sweet potato Leaves pounding or crushing; two full tablespoons are survey finding. administered orally once. Seeds are finely powdered, sieved and boiled until No reference found to confirm this 20 Jatropha curcas L. Euphorbiaceae Iyalode Seeds it thickens; four tablespoons are administered survey finding. orally once. A fresh extract of the leaves is prepared by No reference found to confirm this 21 Jatropha gosssipifolia L. Euphorbiaceae Sese pupa, Botuje pupa Leaves pounding or crushing; 5 ml is administered orally survey finding. once. A fresh extract of the leaves is prepared by No reference found to confirm this 22 Macaranga barteri Mull. Arg. Euphorbiaceae Agbaasa Leaves pounding or crushing; 5 ml is administered orally survey finding. once. Roots are pulverized and dissolved in 10 ml of No reference found to confirm this 23 Newbouldia laevis (P.) Beav. Bignoniaceae Akoko Roots water; a full tablespoon is administered once or a survey finding. pinch of the powder is swallowed with water A fresh extract of the leaves is prepared by This is also reported by Emmanuel and pounding or crushing; two full tablespoons of the 24 Nicotiana tabacum L. Solanaceae Taba Leaves Claidette (2007). extract are administered orally once or a pinch of

the powder is swallowed with water Roots are pulverized with potash(1 g), dried and Parquetina nigrescens (Afzel.) boiled or decoction is made by boiling the roots No reference found to confirm this 25 Periplocaceae Ogbo Roots Bullock with potash; one full tablespoon is administered survey finding. orally once Roots are pulverized, dried and dissolved in 10 No reference found to confirm this 26 Rothmania longiflora Salisb. Rubiaceae Biye, Biyenme Roots ml of water; one full tablespoon is administered survey finding. orally once Leaves or flowers are finely powdered and mixed This is also reported by Babalola 27 Senna alata (L.) Roxb. Caesalpiniaceae Asuwon Leaves, flowers with honey; three full tablespoons are (2009). administered orally once Roots or leaves are finely powdered and dissolved No reference found to confirm this 28 Sida acuta (Burm.) F. Malvaceae Esoketu, isekutu Roots, leaves in 10 ml of water; two full tablespoons are survey finding. administered orally once 168 J. Pharmacognosy Phytother.

Table 1. Contd.

Pulverize roots are dissolved in 10 ml of No reference found to confirm this 29 Treculia africana Decne. Moraceae Afon Roots water; two full tablespoons are administered survey finding. orally once This is also reported by Kumar Roots are finely powdered and dissolved in 30 Vernonia amygdalina Del. Compositae Ewuro, bitter leaf Roots (2012), Lawal et al. ( 2008) and 10 ml of water Emmanuel and Claidette (2007).

Table 2. Occurrence of plant species in each family. Fruits and seeds of Carica papaya (pawpaw) Table 3. Phytochemical screening of Abelmoschus have been investigated for anti spermatogenic esculentus. S/N Family Occcurrence % activity in men (Das, 1980) and anti oestrogenic Abelmoschus esculentus 1 Amaranthaceae 1 3.3 as well as anti implantation activity in women Phytochemicals 2 Bignoniaceae 1 3.3 (Priya et al., 2012); method of preparation may Leaves Roots 3 Caesalpiniaceae 2 6.6 differ. While in the present study, a decoction of Alkaloids - - 4 Caricaceae 1 3.3 the roots to induce abortion was reported. Anthraquinones - - 5 Compositae 3 9.9 Babalola (2009) affirmed the use of concoction of Cardenolides - - 6 Convolvulacee 1 3.3 the roots of male pawpaw. Cardiac glycosides ++ - The use of different plant parts in recipes is of 7 Cucurbitaceae 3 9.9 Flavonoids ++ ++ common occurrence in ethnobotanical studies. 8 Euphorbiaceae 5 16.7 Phenolics ++ + Sometimes leaves may be used as in Saponins ++ + 9 Guttiferae 1 3.3 Acanthospermum hispidum DC (Lemonica and Tannin ++ - 10 Icacinaceae 1 3.3 Alvarenga, 2004), Nicotiana tabacum L. 11 Malvaceae 2 6.7 (Emmanuel and Claidette, 2007), and Senna alata 12 Melastomataceae 1 3.3 (L.) Roxb (Babalola, 2009), other times, roots may 13 Moraceae 1 3.3 be more important as in Vernonia amygdalina Del. the presence of cardiac glycosides, flavonoids, 14 Papilionaceae 1 3.3 (Kumar, 2012; Lawal, 2008) and Baphia nitida phenolics, saponins and tannins in high 15 Periplocaceae 1 3.3 Lodd (Babalola, 2009). In others, recipe fruits are concentrations. However, phytochemical 16 Phyllantaceae 1 3.3 common as in Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad evaluation of the roots of the same plants showed 17 Poaceae 1 3.3 (Chaturredi and Dixit, 1997). In this study, the the presence of flavonoids in high concentrations, 18 Rubiaceae 1 3.3 leaves and roots are the most used parts, which while phenolics and saponins were present in 19 Solanaceae 1 3.3 agree with previous ethnobotanical studies that lower concentrations. Alkaloids, anthraquinones, cardenolides, cardiac glycosides, and tannins 20 Tiliaceae 1 3.3 have been carried out on plants used in the management of fertility (Kumar et al., 2012). were absent. Total 30 - There are some indications of the possibility of Observable biological activities of plant extracts are due to one or more phytochemical use of the leaves of A. esculentus in the therapy components such as gossypol isolated from of heart conditions and as anti-oxidants, anti- (Olatunji-Bello et al., 2009). Moreover, this study cotton plant, Gossypium species (Qian and Wang, septics, anti-cancer, and laxatives as revealed by reported the use of the roots of Eleusine indica to 1984). Hence, the phytochemical evaluation of the the class of natural products present in the plant. induce abortion contrary to its use in the leaves of A. esculentus confirmed the absence of The roots of the plant is rich in flavonoids, this prevention of abortion (Srithi et al., 2009). alkaloids, anthraquinones and cardenolides and suggests the suitability of the plant as useful anti- Ashidi et al. 169

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