Abstract
There is an urgent need for the development of new and more effective natural
products derived from plant species due to the constantly increasing rate of
infectious diseases, especially in developing countries, resulting in high mortality
rates. The popularity of bark for medicinal, spiritual and magical purposes is evident
from the large-scale trade in these materials on the Johannesburg muthi markets.
Bark is frequently used in the preparation of traditional remedies in southern Africa,
and is mostly prefered by the muthi market traders. In the present study, the 70 most
popular and most frequently traded medicinal barks used in traditional medicine were
purchased from the Faraday and Kwa Mai-Mai Muthi Markets in Johannesburg.
Commercial ethnobotanical knowledge associated with medicinal barks was
recorded from traders on the Johannesburg muthi markets. The following information
was provided: vernacular names, method of preparation, and mode of
administration, ailment used for and less often the dosage form. The muthi market
traders are very knowledgeable about the bark products they sell, as some
information given was similar to the literature data. The majority of traders were
females and they were herbalists, either sangomas, traditional healers or ordinary
people from rural areas.
An inventory of the 70 most commonly traded medicinal barks is presented. It
includes the data referred to above, as well as literature data on the recorded uses,
main chemical compounds and antimicrobial activities. Also recorded in the inventory
are detailed descriptions of the bark itself, including digital images of bark materials
and extracts that can be used for the identification purposes.
Selected extracts of the bark (64 samples from 32 medicinal barks) were
subjected to antimicrobial screening against infectious diseases associated with the...
M.Sc. (Botany)