ANTIMALARIAL ACTIVITY OF COMBINATIONS OF PLANTS USED IN THE TREATMENT OF MALARIA IN THE CHILD AND THE PREGNANT WOMAN

This study aimed to contribute to the fight against malaria by evaluating the anti-malarial potential of combinations of plants used in traditional medicine to treat malaria in Benin. Antiplasmodial activity was evaluated by the Sybr green method on clinical isolates and the K1 strain (chloroquine and pyrimethamine resistant) of Plasmodium falciparum while the DPPH trapping test was used to determine the anti-radical activity. Acute toxicity and anti-pyretic test were performed in vivo on Wistar rats. Secondary metabolites were identified by tube characterization tests and confirmed by spectrophotometric assay. The aqueous decoctions of the recipes are not-hemolytic (percentage of hemolysis <5%) and endowed with anti-plasmodial activity (Child: IC50 <15 μg/mL). Combinations of plants are not toxic (LD50˃5g/kg), rich in secondary metabolites and contain anti-radical and anti-pyretic molecules, but only the aqueous decoction of the child's recipe showed good anti-radical activity (IC50 = 0.095 ?g/ml) and anti-pyretic comparable to that of aspirin (reference molecule). The different activities observed would be due to the synergistic effect of the secondary metabolites (phenolic compounds, alkaloids, sterols, terpenes) present in the investigated recipes. The toxicological and clinical trials will allow us to bring to market anti-malarial and anti-pyretic drugs.