| dc.description.abstract | Envenoming and snakebite mortality are a significant public health concern in rural tropical areas in developing countries due to limited access to healthcare. Anti-snake venom (ASV) is the most effective counter measure for treating snake bites. The antivenon is unavailable to the rural folk due to its high cost and poor health systems. Medicinal plants are a rich source of bioactive compounds with therapeutic activities and have been reported to exhibit antinenom properties. The aim of this study was to provide a review of antivenom plant extracts and terpenes. From the accessed literature information, 345 plants were reported to exhibit antivenom properties against snake venoms. However, the information on identification of the antivenom principles is scanty. Most of the plants investigated belong to the Fabaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Apocynaceae, Asteraceae, Lamiaceae and Rubiaceae plant families. Tepenoids reported to have antivenom properties include β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, lupeol, lupeol acetate, lupenone, 28-hydroxylupenone, betulin, betulinic acid, friedelin, β-amyrin, arjunolic acid, oleanolic acid, 11-deoxoglycyrrhetinic acid, quinovic acid and ursolic acid. The results from this study show that plant extracts posses potent snake venom neutralizing activity and could provide an alternative way to inhibit venom toxins in snakebite. Further research to isolate and characterize the antivenom principles from the medicinal plants, and make antivenin formulations is necessary. | en_US |
