Faurea saligna Harv. (Proteaceae): Medicinal uses and biological properties Maroyi Alfred* Department of Botany, University of Fort Hare, Private Bag X1314, Alice, 5700, South Africa *E-mail: amaroyi@ufh.ac.za
Online published on 26 December, 2023. Abstract Faurea saligna Harv. is a small to medium-sized semi-deciduous tree which naturally occurs in bushland and woodland in tropical Africa. The different parts of F. saligna are used as traditional medicines in tropical Africa. This review highlights the existing literature on the medicinal uses and biological properties of F. saligna. This study showed that the bark, leaves, roots, stem bark, stems and twigs of F. saligna are used as aphrodisiac and traditional medicine to treat human diseases such as bilharzia, cough, diabetes, diarrhoea and stomach problems, epilepsy, liver problems, menstrual pains, pneumonia, rheumatism, gonorrhoea and venereal diseases. The phytochemical evaluation of the plant revealed that it contains acids, acid esters, alcohols, alkaloids, flavonoids, furan, ketones, phenolics, steroids, sugars, tannin and terpenes. The pharmacological assessments showed that the crude extracts from the species have antibacterial, antifungal, antimycobacterial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities. Based on the results of this review, a detailed ethnopharmacological evaluation of F. saligna focusing on its phytochemistry, pharmacological properties and toxicological evaluations, in vivo and clinical research are recommended. Top Keywords Ethnopharmacology, Faurea saligna, Indigenous knowledge, Phytochemistry, Proteaceae, Traditional medicine. Top |