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Medicinal plants used to treat malaria in Southern Benin

  • Special Section on Medicinal Plants
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Abstract

People in Benin who cannot resort to allopathic medicines provided by the pharmaceutical industry use many species of plants to alleviate malaria symptoms. Complicated mixtures of different parts of several plant species are employed orally or as a bathing substance. The inventory of 85 species and 30 mixtures bought by us in southern Benin is by no means exhaustive, but the lists serve as examples of the widespread uses in medicine in a restricted area.

Abstract

Si les médecines allopatiques fournis par l’industrie pharmaceutique sont trop chères, les gens prennent une multitude d’espèces de plantes afin de soulever les effets du paludisme. Des mélanges compliqués de différentes portions de plusieurs plantes sont appliquées par voie orale ou en bain. L’inventaire de 85 espèces et 30 mélanges obtenus dans le sud du Bénin n ’est pas excédant, mais les listes servent comme exemples des usages médicaux bien répandus dans une région limitée.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Wageningen University Biosystematics Group, Gen. Foulkesweg 37, 6703, BL Wageningen, the Netherlands

    Hermans Merel & Jos van der Maesen

  2. Projet Flore du Bénin, FAST, Université de Abomey-Calavi, 01 BP, 4521, Cotonou, Bénin

    Akpovi Akoègninou

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  1. Hermans Merel
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  2. Akpovi Akoègninou
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  3. Jos van der Maesen
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Hermans, M., Akoègninou, A. & van der Maesen, J. Medicinal plants used to treat malaria in Southern Benin. Econ Bot 58 (Suppl 1), S239–S252 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1663/0013-0001(2004)58[S239:MPUTTM]2.0.CO;2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1663/0013-0001(2004)58[S239:MPUTTM]2.0.CO;2

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