The use of Nibima and Immunim, two Ghanaian herbal medicines in the management of mild COVID-19: A case report.

Key Clinical Message: Nibima and Immunim manages mild COVID-19 in 7 days. Abstract: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can lead to severe complications and deaths. The search for phytotherapeutic agents to augment the fight against the current COVID-19 pandemic is therefore of highest priority. A 52-year-old female with no history of chronic illness presented to our clinic facility with a 3 days loss of smell and headache which persisted after self-medication. The patient tested positive for COVID-19 in the SARS-CoV-2 Ag test as well as the Typhoid rapid antibody test. Routine laboratory tests were not remarkable. A 60 mL three times daily dose of Nibima and 5 mL in 40 mL of warm water dose of Immunim were given to the patient for 7 days. Patient recovered sense of smell and regained appetite but cough although reduced persisted. She also tested negative for COVID-19 after 7 days treatment. This case is the first documented case of COVID-19 management with herbal medicines in Ghana. We strongly suggest a larger control trial on these products to ascertain these findings to repurpose them as viable treatments for COVID-19.

Structural characterisation and identification of phenylethanoid glycosides from Cistanches deserticola Y.C. Ma by UHPLC/ESI-QTOF-MS/MS.

INTRODUCTION: Phenylethanoid glycosides (PhGs) are the major active constituents of Cistanches deserticola Y.C. Ma. However, the isolation, purification and identification procedures of PhGs are difficult and time-consuming. OBJECTIVE: To establish a rapid and sensitive ultrahigh-pressure liquid chromatography (UHPLC)/ESI (electrospray ion source)-quadrupole time of flight (QTOF)-MS/MS method that could be applied to rapidly profile and identify PhGs. METHODOLOGY: Seven standard compounds were used for the investigation of the fragmentation pattern. Based on the UHPLC/ESI-QTOF-MS/MS method, the important structural information on the types of aglycone and saccharide sequences present should be obtained. RESULTS: According to the HPLC retention behaviour, the proposed fragmentation pathways provided by high-resolution MS and MS/MS spectra and literature sources, a total of 13 PhGs in the crude extract of C. deserticola were identified or tentatively identified. CONCLUSION: A rapid and accurate UHPLC/ESI-QTOF-MS/MS method was established for the identification of PhGs in the crude extract of C. deserticola. This method therefore can be used for rapid prediction of the chemical constituents and qualities of this plant.

Preparative isolation and purification of four compounds from Cistanches deserticola Y.C. Ma by high-speed counter-current chromatography.

Following a constituent enrichment step on a silica gel column, four phenyl-ethanoid glycosides were successfully isolated from Cistanches deserticola and purified by preparative high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) with a two-phase solvent system composed of ethyl acetate-n-butanol-ethanol-water (40:6:6:50, v/v/v/v). A total of 30.9 mg acteoside, 13.0 mg isoacteoside, 12.5 mg syringalide A 3'-α-L-rhamnopyranoside and 7.2 mg 2'-acetylacteoside with purity of higher than 95%, as determined by HPLC-ELSD, were obtained in one-step separation from 297 mg of Cistanche deserticola extract, respectively. Their structures were identified by HR-MS, ¹H-NMR and ¹³C-NMR.

Medicinal Plants with Prospective Benefits in the Management of Peptic Ulcer Diseases in Ghana.

BACKGROUND: The growth or multiplication of harmful microorganisms in addition to harmful human activities has led to many disorders in humans. Consequently, there is a search for medications to treat these disorders. Interestingly, medicines of plant origin are known to be among the most attractive sources of new drugs and have shown promising results in the treatment of various diseases including peptic ulcers. This review, therefore, is aimed at obtaining knowledge on some Ghanaian ethnomedicinal plants used to treat peptic ulcers, their folkloric uses, their phytochemicals, and their antiulcer and related pharmacological activities as well as finding areas for prospective studies. METHODS: Published peer-reviewed articles on ethnomedicinal plants used for the management of peptic ulcers in Ghana from 1967 to 2020 were sourced and used for the study. RESULTS: In this review, 13 plants were identified which belong to 10 different families including Sapindaceae, Apocynaceae, and Bignoniaceae. The parts most often used for most preparations were the leaves (53%), followed by stem bark and roots (both having the same percentage of use of 17.6%), the whole plant (5.9%), and the rhizomes (5.9%). Azadirachta indica was the only plant that had undergone some patient studies in addition to animal studies. Conclusion. A discussion of various antiulcer activity studies using ulcer models carried out on selected medicinal plants used for the management of peptic ulcer disease in addition to brief information on their folkloric uses and their phytochemical and other pharmacological properties is presented. These medicinal plants may be used in developing herbal products for the management of peptic ulcer disease.

A review on anti-peptic ulcer activities of medicinal plants used in the formulation of Enterica, Dyspepsia and NPK 500 capsules.

Peptic ulcer disease affects many people globally. With the increasing resistance to some orthodox antibiotics such as Clarithromycin and Metronidazole, it is important that new acceptable, safer and effective therapies are developed to manage this disease. Various herbal medicines have been used traditionally for the remedy of peptic ulcer disease (PUD), however scientific information with regards to their anti-peptic ulcer both in-vivo and in-vitro as well as clinical studies supporting their use is still inadequate. The Centre for Plant Medicine Research, (CPMR) Mampong-Akuapem, Ghana manufactures three herbal Products namely Enterica, Dyspepsia and NPK 500 capsules which are currently used for the remedy of PUD as a triple therapy at its out-patient clinic with promising effects. The aim of this review is to gather information from literature on the anti-ulcer properties, pharmacological, phytochemical constituents and related activities of herbal plants used at the CPMR for formulation of the triple herbal therapy. This review may, provide some scientific bases for the use of Enterica, Dyspepsia and NPK 500 capsules in the management of Peptic ulcer at the CPMR out-patient clinic. METHODS: Organization for the review involved the on and/or offline search for information from available literature using electronic data and scientific research information resources such as PubMed, Science Direct and Google scholar. RESULTS: In this review, fifteen ethno-medicinal plants used for the formulation of Enterica, Dyspepsia and NPK capsules have been discussed, presenting the description of the plants, composition and pharmacological activity. INTERPRETATION: Tables with the summary of reviewed medicinal plants with their anti-ulcer models and inference on possible mechanisms of action were drawn up. The mechanism(s) of action of individual plants and products (Enterica, Dyspepsia and NPK 500 capsules) must be further investigated and established experimentally in-vitro in addition to in-vivo pharmacological and clinical activity studies to confirm their use in the remedy of PUD.

Regulation effects of Crataegus pinnatifida leaf on glucose and lipids metabolism.

The leaf of Crataegus pinnatifida (Rosaceae) is commonly consumed either raw or cooked to improve digestion and promote blood circulation in China. To investigate the regulation effects of it on glucose and lipid metabolism, the flavonoids fraction was prepared and analyzed by HPLC and LC-MS. In vivo, at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg, the flavonoids fraction showed inhibitory effects on TG and glucose absorption, accelerating effects on gastrointestinal transit but no effect on gastric emptying. In vitro, treatment of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes with 30 µg/mL flavonoids fraction significantly suppressed the accumulation of TG and free fatty acid. It also suppressed the gene expressions of C/EBPα, PPARγ, SREBP 1c, aP2 and adiponectin but did not affect that of leptin. C. pinnatifida leaf may be useful for type 2 diabetics and hyperlipidemics as a foodstuff.