Medicinal plants have historically been a source of drugs in multiple applications, including
the treatment of malaria infections. The Cabo Verde archipelago harbors a rich diversity of native
plants, most of which are used for medicinal purposes. The present study investigated the in vitro
antiplasmodial activities of four native plants from Cabo Verde (i.e., Artemisia gorgonum, Lavandula
rotundifolia, Sideroxylon marginatum, and Tamarix senegalensis). Traditional preparations of these
medicinal plants, namely aqueous extracts (infusions) and ethanolic extracts, were tested against
both chloroquine-sensitive (3D7) and chloroquine-resistant (Dd2) Plasmodium falciparum strains using
the SYBR Green detection method. The in vitro cytotoxicity was evaluated in Caco-2 and PLP2 cells
using a sulforhodamine B colorimetric assay. An ethanolic extract of A. gorgonum and infusions
of T. senegalensis exhibited high antiplasmodial activities (EC50 < 5 g/mL) without cytotoxicity
(GI50 > 400 g/mL). Extracts of L. rotundifolia and S. marginatum exhibited moderate activities,
with EC50 values ranging from 10–30 g/mL. The A. gorgonum ethanolic extract showed activity
toward early ring stages, and parasites treated with the T. senegalensis infusions progressed to the
early trophozoite stage, although did not develop further to the late trophozoite or schizont stages.
Antimalarial activities and the lack of cytotoxicity of the extracts are reported in the present study
and support previous claims by traditional practitioners for the use of these plants against malaria
while suggesting their ethnopharmacological usefulness as future antimalarials.
This research was funded by the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (Project ref:
PTDC/SAU-PAR/28459/2017) and FCT/AgaKhan Development Network (AKDN) through the
project CVAgrobiodiversity/333111699.
