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Assessment of Quality of Artemisia afra Powder Used as Antimalarial in Tanzania

Received: 9 September 2020     Accepted: 22 September 2020     Published: 20 October 2020
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Abstract

The quality of herbal medicine can be affected by environmental conditions where by the medicinal plants are grown or collected, the area where they are dried and processed, storage conditions, transport conditions and manufacturing processes at the point of production. The study aimed to determine the quality of heavy metals, aflatoxins and microbial contaminants of Artemisia afra leaves powder used as herbal medicine processed at the Institute of Traditional Medicine of the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS). Artemisia afra leaves powder was obtained from The Institute of Traditional Medicine (ITM) in Tanzania where it is processed and packed as Fivisia. Microbial contaminants were analyzed by using plate count method for moulds and Shigella spp. while Most Probable Number (MPN) method used for determination of E. coli; Heavy metals were analyzed using; Inductively Couple Plasma – Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) and aflatoxin analysis was done using High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-MS). The data were tabulated, expressed in mean±S. D and presented in graphs and compared to WHO guidelines. The quantity of molds was between 1.1× 103 – 1.2× 103 CFU/g which is below the legal limit according to WHO of maximum of 105 CFU/g, none of the samples were contaminated with E. coli or Shigellas sp. Levels of heavy metals were within the permissible limit for consumed herbal product according to WHO standard guidelines; Chromium 1.69 ± 0.08 ppm, Lead 0.22 ± 0.01, Cadmium 0.08 ± 0.01, Mercury 0.15± 0.08 and Arsenic 0.04 ± 0.02. All samples were found below the detection limit for aflatoxin B1, B2, G1 and G2. The Artemisia afra leaves powder processed and packed as Fivisia at the Institute of Traditional Medicine; Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) is safe for human consumption based on the quality parameters that have been studied.

Published in Science Journal of Chemistry (Volume 8, Issue 5)
DOI 10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14
Page(s) 119-123
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Artemisia afra, Heavy Metals, Aflatoxin, Microbial Contaminants, Traditional Medicine

References
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[2] Osei-Adjei, G. et al. (2013) ‘Quality Assessment Of Aqueous Herbal/Medicinal Products Sold On The Ghanaian Market’, ISSNOnline), 20, pp. 2224–6088. Available at: www.iiste.org (Accessed: 1 February 2018).
[3] Gurav, N. et al. (2011) ‘Physicochemical and antimicrobial activity of single herbal formulation-capsule, containing Emblica Officinalis gaertn.’, International Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 3 (SUPPL. 5), pp. 383–386.
[4] Kunle (2012) ‘Standardization of herbal medicines-A review’, International Journal of Biodiversity and Conservation, 4 (3), pp. 101–112. doi: 10.5897/IJBC11.163.
[5] Chan, K. (2003) ‘Some aspects of toxic contaminants in herbal medicines’, Chemosphere, 52 (9), pp. 1361–1371. doi: 10.1016/S0045-6535(03)00471-5.
[6] Hariharan, P. and Subburaju, T. (2012) ‘Medicinal Plants And Its Standardization – A Global And Industrial Overview’, Global Journal of Medicinal Plant Research, 1 (1), pp. 10–13.
[7] F. Van der Kooy et al; (2008) ‘Artemisia afra: A potential flagship for African Medicinal Plants’, South African Journal of Botany 75 (2009) 185–195.
[8] H, Al Sabbaah and Zarooni, A. (2017) ‘Antibacterial effects and microbial quality of commonly consumed herbs in Dubai, United Arab Emirates’, 24 (December), pp. 2677–2684.
[9] Karayil, S. and Ch, V. (2014) ‘Heavy Metal Analysis from Traditionally used Herb Ceropegia juncea ( Roxb.)’, 4 (12), pp. 7–11.
[10] Barani, A., Nasiri, Z. and Jarrah, N. (2016) ‘Natural occurrence of Aflatoxins in commercial pepper in Iran’. Taylor & Francis, 0105. doi: 10.1080/09540105.2016.1148124.
[11] Sahil, K. et al. (2011) ‘Standardization of Medicinal Plant Materials’, International Journal of Research in Ayurveda & Pharmacy, 2 (24), pp. 1100–1109. Available at: www.ijrap.net.
[12] Zamir, R. et al. (2015) ‘Microbial and heavy metal contaminant of antidiabetic herbal preparations formulated in Bangladesh’, Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2015. doi: 10.1155/2015/243593.
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[14] Kosalec, I., Cvek, J. and Tomić, S. (2009) ‘Contaminants of medicinal herbs and herbal products’, Arhiv za Higijenu Rada i Toksikologiju, 60 (4), pp. 485–501. doi: 10.2478/10004-1254-60-2009-2005.
[15] World Health Organization, 2007. WHO guidelines for assessing quality of herbal medicines with reference to contaminants and residues. World Health Organization.
[16] Al-juraifani, A. A. (2011) ‘Natural occurrence of fungi and aflatoxins of cinnamon in the Saudi Arabia’, 5 (8), pp. 460–465.
[17] Tola, M. and Kebede, B. (2016) ‘Occurrence, importance and control of mycotoxins: A review’, Cogent Food & Agriculture. Cogent, 2 (1), pp. 1–12. doi: 10.1080/23311932.2016.1191103.
[18] Ngari, F. W. et al. (2013) ‘Investigation of Selected Pathogenic Microorganisms and Toxic Elements in Herbal Materials Used in Management of Oral Health in Nairobi County, Kenya’, Journal of Applied Environmental and Biological Sciences, 3 (12), pp. 1–7.
[19] Akram, S. et al. (2015) ‘Determination of heavy metal contents by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) in some medicinal plants from Pakistani and Malaysian origin’, Pakistan Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 28 (5), pp. 1781–1787.
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    Khamis Rashid Kheir, Francis Machum, Wilbrord Kalala, Pax Masimba, Ussi Makame Kombo, et al. (2020). Assessment of Quality of Artemisia afra Powder Used as Antimalarial in Tanzania. Science Journal of Chemistry, 8(5), 119-123. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14

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    ACS Style

    Khamis Rashid Kheir; Francis Machum; Wilbrord Kalala; Pax Masimba; Ussi Makame Kombo, et al. Assessment of Quality of Artemisia afra Powder Used as Antimalarial in Tanzania. Sci. J. Chem. 2020, 8(5), 119-123. doi: 10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14

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    AMA Style

    Khamis Rashid Kheir, Francis Machum, Wilbrord Kalala, Pax Masimba, Ussi Makame Kombo, et al. Assessment of Quality of Artemisia afra Powder Used as Antimalarial in Tanzania. Sci J Chem. 2020;8(5):119-123. doi: 10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14

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  • @article{10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14,
      author = {Khamis Rashid Kheir and Francis Machum and Wilbrord Kalala and Pax Masimba and Ussi Makame Kombo and Mayassa Salum Ally},
      title = {Assessment of Quality of Artemisia afra Powder Used as Antimalarial in Tanzania},
      journal = {Science Journal of Chemistry},
      volume = {8},
      number = {5},
      pages = {119-123},
      doi = {10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.sjc.20200805.14},
      abstract = {The quality of herbal medicine can be affected by environmental conditions where by the medicinal plants are grown or collected, the area where they are dried and processed, storage conditions, transport conditions and manufacturing processes at the point of production. The study aimed to determine the quality of heavy metals, aflatoxins and microbial contaminants of Artemisia afra leaves powder used as herbal medicine processed at the Institute of Traditional Medicine of the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS). Artemisia afra leaves powder was obtained from The Institute of Traditional Medicine (ITM) in Tanzania where it is processed and packed as Fivisia. Microbial contaminants were analyzed by using plate count method for moulds and Shigella spp. while Most Probable Number (MPN) method used for determination of E. coli; Heavy metals were analyzed using; Inductively Couple Plasma – Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) and aflatoxin analysis was done using High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-MS). The data were tabulated, expressed in mean±S. D and presented in graphs and compared to WHO guidelines. The quantity of molds was between 1.1× 103 – 1.2× 103 CFU/g which is below the legal limit according to WHO of maximum of 105 CFU/g, none of the samples were contaminated with E. coli or Shigellas sp. Levels of heavy metals were within the permissible limit for consumed herbal product according to WHO standard guidelines; Chromium 1.69 ± 0.08 ppm, Lead 0.22 ± 0.01, Cadmium 0.08 ± 0.01, Mercury 0.15± 0.08 and Arsenic 0.04 ± 0.02. All samples were found below the detection limit for aflatoxin B1, B2, G1 and G2. The Artemisia afra leaves powder processed and packed as Fivisia at the Institute of Traditional Medicine; Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) is safe for human consumption based on the quality parameters that have been studied.},
     year = {2020}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Assessment of Quality of Artemisia afra Powder Used as Antimalarial in Tanzania
    AU  - Khamis Rashid Kheir
    AU  - Francis Machum
    AU  - Wilbrord Kalala
    AU  - Pax Masimba
    AU  - Ussi Makame Kombo
    AU  - Mayassa Salum Ally
    Y1  - 2020/10/20
    PY  - 2020
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14
    DO  - 10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14
    T2  - Science Journal of Chemistry
    JF  - Science Journal of Chemistry
    JO  - Science Journal of Chemistry
    SP  - 119
    EP  - 123
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2330-099X
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjc.20200805.14
    AB  - The quality of herbal medicine can be affected by environmental conditions where by the medicinal plants are grown or collected, the area where they are dried and processed, storage conditions, transport conditions and manufacturing processes at the point of production. The study aimed to determine the quality of heavy metals, aflatoxins and microbial contaminants of Artemisia afra leaves powder used as herbal medicine processed at the Institute of Traditional Medicine of the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS). Artemisia afra leaves powder was obtained from The Institute of Traditional Medicine (ITM) in Tanzania where it is processed and packed as Fivisia. Microbial contaminants were analyzed by using plate count method for moulds and Shigella spp. while Most Probable Number (MPN) method used for determination of E. coli; Heavy metals were analyzed using; Inductively Couple Plasma – Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) and aflatoxin analysis was done using High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-MS). The data were tabulated, expressed in mean±S. D and presented in graphs and compared to WHO guidelines. The quantity of molds was between 1.1× 103 – 1.2× 103 CFU/g which is below the legal limit according to WHO of maximum of 105 CFU/g, none of the samples were contaminated with E. coli or Shigellas sp. Levels of heavy metals were within the permissible limit for consumed herbal product according to WHO standard guidelines; Chromium 1.69 ± 0.08 ppm, Lead 0.22 ± 0.01, Cadmium 0.08 ± 0.01, Mercury 0.15± 0.08 and Arsenic 0.04 ± 0.02. All samples were found below the detection limit for aflatoxin B1, B2, G1 and G2. The Artemisia afra leaves powder processed and packed as Fivisia at the Institute of Traditional Medicine; Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) is safe for human consumption based on the quality parameters that have been studied.
    VL  - 8
    IS  - 5
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Natural Products Development and Formulation, Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

  • Department of Natural Products Development and Formulation, Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

  • Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmancy, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

  • Department of Biological and Pre-Clinical Studies, Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

  • Zanzibar Health Research Institute, Zanzibar, Tanzania

  • Zanzibar Health Research Institute, Zanzibar, Tanzania

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