Plants usually synthesize aromatic substances,
which in many cases serve as the molecules of plant defense against predation
by microorganisms, insects, and herbivores. Several of the plants
possess medicinal properties. Erythrina senegalensis is one of such plants
and belongs to the family Fabaceae. It is a thorny shrub used as vegetable,
with common names that include ‘Minjirya’ (Hausa, Nigeria). Some phytochemicals
such as tannins, glycosides, alkaloids, and others have been identified in the
E. senegalensis stem bark. The leaf has also been shown to contain some
phytochemicals.
The stem bark and root extracts of Erythrina
senegalensis have been reported in Nigerian studies to have antimalarial,
analgesic, antiinflammatory, and anti-bacterial actions, while in other African
studies it has been used to treat female secondary sterility, asthma, liver
disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, fever, jaundice, nose bleeding, urinary
bilharziasis, eye infections, and body pain.
Given the continual consumption of E.
senegalensis for the maintenance of health and in management of several
diseases, and secondly the paucity of information on the leaf extract, the
present study is aimed at evaluating the phytochemical constituents and acute
oral toxicity (LD50) of the leaf extract of E. senegalensis.
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