Nigerian Plants Show Promise Against Polio Virus.

A plant, Sphenocentrum jollyanum (akerejupon in Yoruba), could
be the next best drug for poliomyelitis,
diabetes, impotence and multi-drug
resistant bacteria.
THREE Nigerian plants have shown promise
in the global effort to eradicate the Wild
Polio Virus (WPV).
The study, published in Nigerian Journal of
Natural Products and Medicine by J. O.
Moody and V. A. Roberts is titled “Antiviral
effect of selected medicinal plants:
Diospyros bateri, Diospyros monbutensis
and Sphenocentrum jollyanum on polio
viruses. ”
According to the study, methanolic extracts
of the different morphological parts of
three medicinal plants, Diospyros bateri,
Diospyros monbutensis and Sphenocentrum
jollyanum were evaluated for their antiviral
activities on polio virus Types 1, 2, and 3.
The leaf and root extracts of S. jollyanum,
the seed extracts of D. monbutensis as well
as the leaf extract of D. bateri were active
against polio virus Type 2 in both the ‘post-
treatment assay’ and ‘pre-treatment assay’
protocols.
The seed extract of D. bateri were active
against poliovirus Type 2 in ‘post-treatment
assay only’. Toxicity level of each plant
extract or indicator cell lines were also
determined and found to range from
Minimum Cytotoxic Dose (MCD50) of
3.9x10-3 mg ml-1 for crude methanol leaf
extract of S. jollyanum on Hep-2 (Human
Epithelia cell line) to MCD50 of 1.2x10-7 mg
ml-1 for leaf methanol extract of D. bateri
on Vero cell line (African Green Monkey
Fibroblast).
Phytochemical screening of the plants
revealed that tannins and saponins were
present in the three plants while only D.
monbutensis contain both combined and
free anthraquinones.
The plant Sphenocentrum jollyanum belongs
to menispermaceae family. In indigenous
Yoruba language, it is called akerejupon.
According to another study published in
African Journal Medicine and Medical
Sciences, the alcoholic extracts of leaves of
Diospyros bateri and D. monbuttensis
showed strong antibacterial activity against
a wide range of Gram-positive and Gram-
negative bacteria, while only the aqueous
extract of D. bateri showed antibacterial
activity against all the bacteria tested.
Another study published in Journal of
Medicinal Plants Research concluded: “The
result of this finding clearly indicated that
the aqueous extract of S. jollyanum root
was effective in reducing the blood glucose
concentration of alloxan diabetic and
hyperglycaemic (high blood glcose) rabbits.
This is informative requiring that further
work be conducted. This may be a potential
source for the development of a new
effective oral anti-diabetic agent. ”
The study, titled “The effect of aqueous root
extract of Sphenocentrum jollyanum on
blood glucose level of rabbits, ” was
conducted by researchers from Olabisi
Onabanjo University, Ogun State and College
of Medicine, University of Lagos.
The researchers wrote: “Sphenocentrum
jollyanum, a perennial plant is an erect
shrub that belongs to the family
Menispermaceae. It is distributed along the
west coast of Africa from Sierra Leone
across Nigeria to Cameroun. The plant is
traditionally used as remedy for feverish
conditions, cough and wound dressing and
as an aphrodisiac. Studies have shown the
leaves to possess significant antipyretic and
analgesic activities. The roots and leaves
have been reported to be active against
Polio Type-2 virus. Investigations revealed
that different parts of the plant exhibited
significant antioxidant and anti-
inflammatory properties. ”
The bark of Sphenocentrum jollyanum has
been shown to stimulate sexual capability.
Its fruit tastes like mango and is edible.
Sphenocentrum jollyanum is believed by
medicine men to have unusual leading
properties, so explaining why the root
extract is swallowed for constipation and to
increase appetite as well as a stomachic in
southern Nigeria and Ghana.
However, results of a comprehensive
assessment of the effect of Sphenocentrum
jollyanum root extract on male reproductive
activity in albino rats published in
Reproductive Medicine and Biology suggest
that methanol extract of the Sphenocentrum
jollyanum root could produce harmful
effects on reproductive functions in male
albino rats which can be attributed to poor
sperm quantity (epididymal sperm count),
quality (sperm motility, viability and
morphology) and testicular degeneration.
The steroidogenic potential of the plant
could explain its use as an aphrodisiac
agent.
The researchers wrote: “Male albino rats
were treated orally with distilled water
(vehicle for the extract; control) and 50, 100
and 150 mg kg?1 body weight of
Sphenocentrum jollyanum root extract for
8 weeks. Each group had its own recovery.
Rats were killed 24 h after the last
treatment. Caudal epididymal sperm count,
motility, viability, morphology and organ
weights were determined. Hematological
indices, serum proteins, enzymes, testicular
superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, and
testicular and epididymal histology were
determined.
“Compared with the control, the extract
caused a dose dependent significant
reduction in progressive motility of
spermatozoa, viability and total sperm
counts. The number of abnormal
spermatozoa and epididymal volume were
not statistically significant. There was a
significant increase in serum testosterone
levels in rats treated with 50 and
100 mg kg?1 of Sphenocentrum jollyanum.
“There was a significant increase in red
blood cell count, packed cell volume and
hemoglobin concentration, whereas there
was no change in white blood cell count,
mean total serum protein, albumin and
globulin in the sera of Sphenocentrum
jollyanum treated rats when compared with
the control.
“The extract caused a significant decrease
in serum aspartate and alanine
aminotransferase activities with a
significant increase in testicular SOD activity
at a dose of 50 mg kg?1 bodyweight.
Testicular cytoarchitecture of the extract
treated rats showed degeneration of
seminiferous tubules, whereas regeneration
of germinal epithelium and restructuring of
the germinal interstitium occurred in the
recovery rats. No lesions were observed in
the epididymis of the rats. ”