Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants for the treatment of malaria in Akinyele local government area, Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract

There is an increasing resistance of malaria parasites to cholroquine, one of the affordable and commonly used drugs for malaria in Nigeria. Therefore, the use of plants with anti-malaria properties is now very common in the country. Today, not much has been done to project antimalaria properties of indigenous medicinal plants. This study examined the medicinal plants used for malaria therapy in Akinyele Local Government Area of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Fifty-one (51) species including Chrysophyllum albidum (Agbalumo), Azadirachta indica (Dongoyaro), Chromolena odorata (Akintola), Mondia whitei (Mondi), Morinda lucida (Oruwo) and Newbouldia leavis (Akoko) plants were found to be very effective in the cure for malaria in the study area. The parts of plant used could be the barks, roots, leaves or whole plants. The different parts of the plant can be combined to have a recipe. This study highlights potential sources for the development of new anti-malaria drugs from indigenous medicinal plants found in Akinyele LGA, Ibadan, Nigeria.

Keywords: Malaria, Medicinal plants, anti-malaria drugs, Akinyele, Southwest Nigeria