Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
a decrease in daily sperm production and depletion of the 1C (round and elongated spermatids) popu-
lation. These results indicated that caution is required in the use of the flower bud of
Syzygium aro-
maticum
as an aphrodisiac in indigenous systems of medicine or as a dietary supplement.
1020
The probable biochemical mechanism of the antidiabetic action of clove has been outlined by
Adefegha and Oboh.
1021
It was found that the phenolics-rich extracts inhibited alpha-amylase and alpha-
glucosidase in a dose-dependent manner. However, the alpha-glucosidase inhibitory activity of the
extracts was significantly (
p
< 0.05) higher than their alpha-amylase inhibitory activity. The free phe-
nolics (31.67 mg/g) and flavonoid (17.28 mg/g) contents were significantly (
p
< 0.05) higher than bound
phenolic (23.52 mg/g) and flavonoid (13.70 mg/g) contents. The extracts also exhibited high antioxidant
activities, as typified by their high reducing power, DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging abilities, as well
as inhibition of Fe
2+
-induced lipid peroxidation in rat pancreas
in vitro.
It was suggested that these activi-
ties could explain the biochemical rationale by which clove elicits a therapeutic effect on type 2 diabetes.
TABERNANTHE IBOGA
Botanical Name —
Tabernanthe iboga
Baill.
Synonyms —
T. albiflora
Stapf.,
T. bocca
Stapf.,
Iboga vateriana
Braun-Blanq. & K.Schum.
Family —
Apocynaceae
Common Names —
Iboga, eboka, bitter grass, sacred wood, leaf of God
African Names —
Igbo: ochima; Gabon: iboga; Zaire: lopundja, lopundu mokundji
Description —
Tabernanthe iboga
is an evergreen tree or shrub, usually growing up to 8 m tall.
The leaves are broadly ovate, sometimes oblong-elliptic or broadly elliptic. They occur as single oppo-
site leaves attached to the branches or directly appendaged to the young stems. It exudes copious white
latex. The root, which is the part usually employed in medicine, is characteristically yellow in color.
Habitat and Distribution —
It grows in the rainforest belt. It is known to occur mainly in the
western-central region of the continent. It has been located in southeastern Nigeria, Gabon, the
Central African Republic, and the island of Equatorial Guinea.
Ethnomedicinal Uses —
Tabernanthe iboga
and related
Tabernaemontana
species (Fam.
Apocynaceae) are used in West Africa as ritual hallucinogenic agents. The plant is employed in many
secret rituals by cults in various parts of the region.
Taber nanthe
species are employed in traditional
African medicine for the treatment of a variety of diseases, including manic depression and leprosy,
and as a nerve stimulant, appetizer, and aphrodisiac. The use of iboga in West African religious expe-
rience has been documented by Lewis and Elvin-Lewis.
227
The plant is, however, rarely used alone
but in a mixture with members of the plant families Apocynaceae, Loganaceae, and Euphorbiaceae.
