African trypanosomiasis

African trypanosomiasis is a parasitic disease transmitted by the tsetse fly. It gets its nickname ‘sleeping sickness’ because symptoms can include a disturbed sleep pattern. There are two types of trypanosomiasis that affect humans, they are divided according to their geographical location:

• African trypanosomiasis, or sleeping sickness, is caused by Trypanosoma brucei parasites in sub-Saharan Africa and is transmitted by the tsetse fly? (Glossina).
• American trypanosomiasis, or Chagas disease, is caused by Trypanosoma cruzi parasites in Latin America and is transmitted by the triatomine or ‘kissing’ bug.

Natural Treatment

• Trichilia emetica
• Strychnos spinosa
• Hymenocardia acida
• Plants such as Khaya senegalensis and Terminalia avicenniodes are used in the treatment of trypanosomosis in animals (Maikai et al., 2010).
• Studies have also shown that extracts of Albizia gummifera, Ehretia amoena , Entada abyssinica, Securinega virosa and Vernonia subuligera have anti-trypanosomial activity (Freiburghaus et al., 1996).
• Quinoline alkaloids obtained from Cinchona bark and emetine, an isoquinoline alkaloid obtained from Cephaelis ipecacuanha (Hoet et al, 2004), as well as camptothecin , a pentacyclic alkaloid from Camptotheca acuminata (Nyssaceae), have all demonstrated promising anti- trypanosomial activity (Bodley and Shapiro, 1995).
• It has also been reported by Moideen et al. (1999) that extracts of the stem bark and root bark of Kigelia pinnata possess marked anti-trypanosomial activity against bloodstream forms of both T. b. brucei and T. b. rhodesiense.

references

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15036465
• Bodley A L, Shapiro T A (1995). Molecular and cytotoxic effects of camptothecin, a topoisomerase I inhibitor, on trypanosomes and Leishmania. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the USA, 92:3726-3730.
• Hoet S, Opperdoes F, Brun R, Quetin-Leclercq J (2004). Natural products active against African trypanosomes: a step towards new drugs. Natural Product Reports, 21: 353-364.
• Freiburghaus F, Ogwal EN, Nkunya MH, Kaminsky R, Brun R (1996). In vitro antitrypanosomal activity of African plants used in traditional medicine in Uganda to treat sleeping sickness. Tropical Medicine and International Health, 1(6):765-771.
• Maikai VA, Abubakar U, Salman AA, Inuwa TN (2010). Preliminary Survey of Medicinal Plants Used in Treatment of Animal Trypanosomiasis in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Ethnobotanical Leaflets, 14: 319-326.
• Moideen SVK, Houghton PJ, Rock P, Croft SL, Aboagye-Nyame F (1999). Activity of extracts and naphthoquinones from Kigelia pinnata against Trypanosoma brucei brucei and Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense. Planta Medica, 65(6):536-540.