Ethnobotanical characterization of medicinal plants used in Kisantu and Mbanza-Ngungu territories, Kongo-Central Province in DR Congo

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-52904/v2

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Ethnobotanical characterization of medicinal plants used in Kisantu and Mbanza-Ngungu territories, Kongo-Central Province in DR Congo

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-52904/v2

This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License

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published 23 Jan, 2021

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Background: The phytotherapeutic knowledge of the Kongo people in the territories of Kisantu and Mbanza-Ngungu in Kongo-Central Province (DR Congo) is rapidly eroding. To document the remaining knowledge, we conducted an ethnobotanical survey on the most important medicinal plant species and diseases treated with them, as well as plants with therapeutic potential. We also checked for the cultural similarity in medicinal plant knowledge between the two territories and how knowledge about Kongo medicinal plants differs between different social groups.

Methods: From June 2017 until February 2018 and from February 2019 until April 2019, we conducted a survey with 188 phytotherapists, selected using the snowball method and surveyed using semi-structured interviews. Voucher specimens were taken for identification. Ethnobotanical data were analyzed using medicinal Use Value (UVs), Informant Agreement Ratio (IARs), Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) and Species Therapeutic Potential (STP). Rahman’s similarity index was used for ethno-cultural comparison of medicinal plant knowledge between the two communities. Medicinal knowledge between different social groups was analyzed using non parametric tests and Poisson regression.

Results: A total of 231 plants (i.e. 227 botanical species, representing 192 genera and 79 families) were reportedly used to treat 103 diseases. Most abundant taxa were reported for the Fabaceae family (including 11.9 % of species and 10.9% of genera). Most reported species (45.0%) were from anthropized areas. Leaves (39.4%), herbs (37.1%), decoction (41.7%) and oral ingestion (72%) were the most frequently cited plant part, botanical form, preparation and administration method, respectively. Four of all inventoried species showed high UV S (> 0.05), whereas eight had an IAR of one. According to ICF, 31 diseases were mentioned. Highest ICF (≥ 0.4) was observed for hemorrhoids (0.44), amoebiasis (0.43) and itchy rash (0.42). Fifty-four plant species were identified as likely possessing an interesting therapeutic potential. Low ethno-cultural similarity in medicinal knowledge (RSI = 16.6%) was found between the two territories. Analysis of the Kongo medicinal plant knowledge showed that the mean number of reported species and diseases vary considerably depending on gender, type and residence of therapists (P < 0.05).

Conclusion : Results prove that the Kongo phytopharmacopoeia makes use of interesting medicinal plant species that could be further studied for conservation and pharmacological applications.

Botany

phytopharmacopoeia

medicinally important species

use-value consensus

informant knowledge

cultural similarity

Kisantu

Mbanza-Ngungu

Table 1. Informant sociological profiles and average (± SD) number of reported species and diseases

Factors	Category	No	%	No. of species	No. of disease
Gender	Woman	80	42,6	3,3±3,2	1,4±1,5
Gender	Man	108	57,4	4,8±3,9	1,9±1,9
Age	Young	8	4,3	3±1,9	2±2,8
	Adult	136	72,3	4,0±3,6	1,6±1,7
	Old	44	23,4	4,8±4,2	2,1±1,9
School level	Illiterate	28	14,9	3,6±3,5	1,5±1,4
	Primary	62	33,0	4,2±3,5	1,5±1,4
	Secondary	78	41,5	4,7±4,1	2,1±2,2
	Superior	20	10,6	2,7±2,0	1,4±1,8
Experience (year)	0-5	12	6,4	2,5±1,6	1
	5-10	28	14,9	4,6±4,4	1,9±1,9
	> 10	148	78,7	4,2±3,6	1,8±1,9
Informants categories	Herbalist	13	6,9	1,9±1,5	1
	Curing healer	21	11,2	6,7±5,6	3,1±2,6
	traditional health practitioner	154	81,9	4±3,3	1,6±1,7
Marital stratus	Single	19	10,1	2,6±1,9	1,4±1,8
	Married	132	70,2	4,6±3,9	1,8±1,9
	Widower	37	19,7	3,5±2,8	1,6±1,5
Residence	Kisantu	81	43,1	4,7±4,2	1,9±1,9
	Mbanza-Ngungu urban area	39	20,7	5,2±4,4	2,5±2,6
	Mbanza-Ngungu rural area	68	36,2	2,9±1,8	1,0±0,1
	Total	188	100,0	4,2±3,7	1,7±1,8

Table 2. Taxonomic diversity of medicinal plants in the study area

Family	Number of reported species	Share of reported species (%)	Number of genera	Share of genera (%)
Fabaceae	27	11.9	21	10.9
Euphorbiaceae	13	5.7	12	6.3
Rubiaceae	12	5.3	10	5.2
Asteraceae	11	4.8	11	5.7
Lamiaceae	11	4.8	6	3.1
Solanaceae	10	4.4	7	3.6
Poaceae	8	3.5	8	4.2
Apocynaceae	7	3.1	6	3.1
Malvaceae	7	3.1	7	3.6
Cucurbitaceae	5	2.2	5	2.6
Anacardiaceae	5	2.2	4	2.1
Moraceae	5	2.2	4	2.1
Zingiberaceae	5	2.2	4	2.1
Annonaceae	4	1.8	3	1.6
Araceae	4	1.8	4	2.1
Myrtaceae	4	1.8	3	1.6
Amaryllidaceae	3	1.3	1	0.5
Arecaceae	3	1.3	3	2.1
Cyperaceae	3	1.3	2	1.0
Dioscoreaceae	3	1.3	1	0.5
Phyllanthaceae	3	1.3	3	1.6
Other families (with < 3 species)	74	32.6	67	34.9
Total	227	100.0	192	100.0

Table 3. Plant use consensus and species with high therapeutic potential

Diseases	ICF	Species with therapeutic potential
Amoebiasis	0,43	Allium sativum L.
		Chamaesyce hirta (L.) Millsp.
		Elaeis guineensis Jacq.
Anemia	0,1	Ochna afzelii R.Br. ex Oliv.
Hookworm	0,17	Allium cepa L.
		Allium sativum L.
		Piper nigrum L.
Asthma	0,09	Imperata cylindrica (L.) P.Beauv
Dental caries	0,14	Datura stramonium L
Dental caries	0,14	Elaeis guineensis Jacq.
Headache	0,18	Brillantaisia patula T. Anderson
Headache	0,18	Ocimum gratissimum L.
Diabetes	0,05	Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench
Chest or intercostal pain	0,1	Eleusine africana Kenn.-O'Byrne
Premature ejaculation	0,14	Zingiber officinale Roscoe
Elephantiasis and yellowing of the hair	0,17	Strychnos pungens Soler.
Epilepsy	0,19	Aframomum melegueta (Roscoe) K.Schum.
		Allium cepa L.
		Garcinia kola Heckel
		Lippia multiflora Moldenke
		Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC.
Itchy skin rash	0,42	Brillantaisia patula T. Anderson
		Clerodendrum formicarum Gürke
		Commelina africana L.
		Mondia whitei (Hook. f.) Skeels
		Nymphaea lotus L.
Sexual weakness or impotence	0,32	Mondia whitei (Hook. f.) Skeels
		Newbouldia laevis (P.Beauv.) Semble.
		Heinsia crinita (Afzel.) G.Taylor
		Gardenia ternifolia subsp. jovis-tonantis (Welw.) Verdc..
		Hymenocardia acida Tul.
		Coffea sp.
		Dioscorea smilacifolia De Wild. Et T.Durand
Madness	0,07	Brillantaisia patula T. Anderson
Chronic scabies with itching and stench	0,1	Gossypium barbadense L.
Gastritis	0,14	Allium cepa L
		Brillantaisia patula
		Citrus limon (L.) Burm.f.
		Jatropha curcas L.
Hemorrhoids	0,44	Aframomum melegueta (Roscoe) K.Schum.
		Capsicum frutescens L.
		Mangifera indica L.
		Monodora angolensis T. Anderson
		Piper nigrum L.
		Zingiber officinale Roscoe
Hernia	0,2	Desmodium mauritianum (Willd.) DC.
		Gardenia ternifolia subsp. jovis-tonantis (Welw.) Verdc
		Hallea stipulosa (DC.) J.-F.Leroy
		Pentadiplandra brazzeana Baillon
		Sarcocephalus latifolius (Sm.) E. A. Bruce
		Sarcocephalus pobeguinii Pobeg.
		Steganotaenia araliacea Hochst.
		Xylopia aethiopica (Dunal) A. Rich.
Laryngitis	0,27	Bridelia ferruginea Benth.
		Kalaharia uncinata (Schinz) Moldenke
		Musanga cecropioides R. Br.
		Pentadiplandra brazzeana Baillon
Malaria	0,17	Artemisia annua L.
Mastitis	0,05	Momordica charantia L.
Microfilariate	0,1	Momordica charantia L.
Migraine	0,15	Elaeis guineensis Jacq.
		Eleusine africana Kenn.-O'Byrne
		Ocimum minimum L.
Sciatic neuralgia	0,15	Elaeis guineensis Jacq.
Sciatic neuralgia	0,15	Ocimum gratissimum L.
Otitis	0,25	Ocimum gratissimum L.
Poliomyelitis	0,36	Aframomum melegueta (Roscoe) K.Schum.
		Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf
		Cyperus articulatus L.
		Securidaca longepedunculata Fresen.
Prostate	0,13	Zea mays L.
Splenomegaly	0,29	Elaeis guineensis Jacq.
Splenomegaly	0,29	Eleusine africana Kenn.-O'Byrne
Rheumatism	0,25	Aframomum melegueta (Roscoe) K.Schum.
		Capsicum frutescen L.
		Elaeis guineensis Jacq.
		Musa x paradisiaca L.
		Ocimum gratissimum L.
		Securidaca longipedunculata Fresen.
Cough	0,2	Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf
		Eucalyptus maculata var. citriodora (Hook.) FMBailey
		Lantana camara L.
Intestinal parasitosis	0,33	Zingiber officinale Roscoe

Table 4. Ethnomedicinal cultural similarity between Kisantu and Mbanza-Ngungu territories.

Ethnic groups/regions	Parameter	Kisantu	Mbanza-Ngungu (Urban area)	Mbanza-Ngungu (Rural area)
Kisantu	a	-	60	13
	b	-	89	86
	c	-	74	77
	d	-	12	24
	e	-	32	27
	RSI	-	5.7%	15.8
Mbanza-Ngungu (urban & rural areas)	a	58	-	-
	b	68	-	-
	c	105	-	-
	d	33	-	-
	e	40	-	-
	RSI	16.7%	-	-
Mbanza-Ngungu (urban area)	a	89	-	39
	b	60	-	83
	c	74	-	51
	d	12	-	13
	e	32	-	23
	RSI	5.7%	-	8.1%
Mbanza-Ngungu (rural area)	a	86	83	-
	b	13	39	-
	c	77	51	-
	d	24	13	-
	e	27	23	-
	RSI	15.8%	8.1%	-

a (number of unique species in community A), b (number of unique species in community B), c (number of common species in both A and B communities), d (number of common species used for the same diseases in both A and B communities), e (number of equal diseases reported in both A and B communities) and RSI (Rahman similarity index).

Table 5. Poisson regression model of the average number of species and diseases cited by the different social groups

Dependent	Factor	B (estimated coefficient)	Standard Error	p-value.	Exp(B) (exponentiated values)
	(Constant)	1.191	0.0769	.000	3.289
Number of species	Female	-0.29	0.0764	.000	0.749
	Male	0^a	.	.	1
	Kisantu (urban)	0.426	0.0977	.000	1.53
	Mbanza-Ngungu urban	0.565	0,0999	.000	1.76
	Mbanza-Ngungu rural	0^a	.	.	1
	Herbalists	-0.812	0.2165	.000	0.444
	Curing healer	0.383	0.1056	.000	1.467
	Traditional health practitioners	0^a	.	.	1
	(Scale)	1^b
Number of diseases	(Constant)	0.132	0.1288	0.304	1.142
	Female	-0.279	0.1181	0.018	0.756
	Male	0^a	.	.	1
	Kisantu (urban)	0,52	0.1616	0.001	1.682
	Mbanza-Ngungu urban	0.874	0.1576	0	2.397
	Mbanza-Ngungu rural	0^a	.	.	1
	Herbalists	-0.467	0.3005	0.12	0.627
	Curing healer	0.574	0.1595	0	1.774
	Traditional health practitioners	0^a	.	.	1
	(Scale)	1^b