Diversity and biological activities of medicinal plants of Santiago island (Cabo Verde)
Maria M. Romeiras,
Anyse P. Essoh,
Sílvia Catarino,
Joceline Silva,
Katelene Lima,
Eromise Varela,
Mónica Moura,
Isildo Gomes,
Maria Cristina Duarte,
Maria Paula Duarte
Affiliations
Maria M. Romeiras
LEAF—Linking Landscape, Environment, Agriculture and Food Research Center & Associated Laboratory TERRA, Instituto Superior de Agronomia (ISA), Universidade de Lisboa, Tapada da Ajuda, 1340-017 Lisboa, Portugal; cE3c - Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c) & CHANGE - Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal; Corresponding author. .
LEAF—Linking Landscape, Environment, Agriculture and Food Research Center & Associated Laboratory TERRA, Instituto Superior de Agronomia (ISA), Universidade de Lisboa, Tapada da Ajuda, 1340-017 Lisboa, Portugal; Forest Research Center (CEF) & Associated Laboratory TERRA, Instituto Superior de Agronomia (ISA), Universidade de Lisboa, 1349-017 Tapada da Ajuda, Lisbon, Portugal
Joceline Silva
LEAF—Linking Landscape, Environment, Agriculture and Food Research Center & Associated Laboratory TERRA, Instituto Superior de Agronomia (ISA), Universidade de Lisboa, Tapada da Ajuda, 1340-017 Lisboa, Portugal; MEtRICs, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal
Katelene Lima
MEtRICs, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal; Research Institute for Medicines (iMed.ULisboa), Faculty of Pharmacy, Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Professor Gama Pinto, 1649-003 Lisbon, Portugal
Eromise Varela
Universidade de Santiago, Avenida Bolanha, Cidade de Assomada, CP 4, Ilha de Santiago, Assomada 7310, Cabo Verde
Mónica Moura
Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources (CIBIO), InBIO Associate Laboratory, Pole of Azores, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade dos Açores, 9500-321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal
Isildo Gomes
Instituto Nacional de Investigação e Desenvolvimento Agrário (INIDA), São Jorge dos Órgãos, CP 84, Santiago, Cabo Verde
Maria Cristina Duarte
cE3c - Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c) & CHANGE - Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
Maria Paula Duarte
MEtRICs, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal; Corresponding author.
Plants continue to constitute key elements of medical practice in West African countries. The Cabo Verde archipelago hosts a great diversity of medicinal plants and local markets are considered important sites for trading plants harvested by rural communities. This study has two main goals: (i) to assess the medicinal uses of native species in Santiago, the biggest island of the archipelago, and (ii) to evaluate the antioxidant, antimicrobial and antidiabetic/antihyperglycemic activities of two native trees (Tamarix senegalensis and Sideroxylon marginatum) used in traditional medicine and traded in local markets. Our results revealed that on Santiago Island, 24 native plants are used in traditional medicine. The main uses of these species (e.g., forage, timber, food and fibres), their medicinal applications, the plant parts used, their mode of administration and conservation status are presented here for the first time. Moreover, the pharmacological characterization of two native tree species revealed that hydroethanolic extracts were richer in phenolic compounds and more active than their aqueous counterparts. All the studied extracts revealed significant antioxidant properties (DPPH and FRAP assays) and were generally moderately active against Gram-positive bacteria. All the extracts inhibited the activities of the carbohydrate digestive enzymes α-glucosidase and α-amylase in a dose-dependent manner. For α-glucosidase, the detected inhibitory activity (IC50 values from 2.0 ± 0.2 μg/mL to 9.9 ± 1.2 μg/mL) was significantly higher than that of acarbose, suggesting that extracts of both species can delay glucose absorption, thereby assisting in slowing down the progression of diabetes. Our findings highlight the crucial importance that medicinal plants have for the Cabo Verdean population, while also raising awareness on the need for sustainable use and conservation of native flora, and of tree species traded in local markets in particular.
