Ethnobotanical survey of the traditional antiparasitic use of medicinal plants in humans and animals in Laghouat (Southern Algeria)

Vet World Vol.16 February-2023 Article-15

Research Article

Veterinary World, 16(2): 357-368

https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2023.357-368

Fathia Benlarbi¹, Nora Mimoune², Noureddine Chaachouay³, Karim Souttou¹, Radhwane Saidi⁴, Mohamed Rahmani Mokhtar⁴, Rachid Kaidi⁵, and Mohammed Hocine Benaissa⁶

1. Laboratory for Exploration and Valorization of Steppe Ecosystems (EVES), Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Life, University of Djelfa, Moudjbara Road, BP 3117, Djelfa, Algeria.
2. Department of Clinics, Animal Health and Production Laboratory, Higher National Veterinary School, Algiers, 16000, Algeria.
3. Agri-Food and Health Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques of Settat, Hassan FIRST University, Po. Box. 382, 26000 Settat, Morocco.
4. Laboratory of Biological and Agronomic Sciences, Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Sciences, Laghouat University, Laghouat, Algeria.
5. Institute of Veterinary Sciences, LBRA, University of Blida 1, PB 270, Soumaa, Blida, 09000, Algeria.
6. Scientific and Technical Research Centre for Arid Areas (CRSTRA), Biophysical Station, PB 30240, Nezla, Touggourt, Algeria.

Background and Aim: An ethnobotanical survey was carried out among the inhabitants of the Aflou region of Laghouat (Southern Algeria). This study was considered as a first step toward the identification of new bioactive antiparasitic molecules. The preservation and documentation of this traditional knowledge will ensure its continuity and transmission from one generation to another, especially because of the emergence of resistant parasites and the lack of references caused by the lack of work in this area; therefore, we intended to inventory and collect the maximum amount of information on medicinal plants that are traditionally used by the local population as antiparasitic in humans and animals (small ruminants, cattle, and livestock).

Materials and Methods: The information was collected using open interviews; the ethnobotanical survey was carried out in the area mentioned above from April to July 2021 using a semi-structured questionnaire and a global sample of 200 respondents. The data were analyzed using the System Package for the Social Sciences software and Microsoft Excel 2010 using the following quantitative indices: Relative frequency of citation (RFC), family importance value (FIV), fidelity level, and informant consensus factor (ICF).

Results: The investigation uncovered the antiparasitic use of 58 plant species belonging to 30 families. The family Asteraceae had the highest FIV (FIV = 0.23). The pathology with the highest degree of agreement among the informants was genitourinary parasitosis (ICF = 0.930). The species that was most commonly cited by the local population was Artemisia herba-alba Asso (RFC = 1), and the foliage was the most commonly used part (46.4%). Infusion (38.8%) was the most-used preparation for remedies.

Conclusion: This investigation revealed a rich ethnopharmacological knowledge in southern Algeria; therefore, the data gathered in this survey may be utilized to create novel antiparasitic compounds with activity in humans and animals. Keywords: antiparasitic medicinal plants, ethnobotanical survey, human and animal parasitosis, Laghouat.

Keywords: antiparasitic medicinal plants, ethnobotanical survey, human and animal parasitosis, Laghouat.

How to cite this article: Benlarbi F, Mimoune N, Chaachouay N, Souttou K, Saidi R, Mokhtar MR, Kaidi R, and Benaissa MH (2023) Ethnobotanical survey of the traditional antiparasitic use of medicinal plants in humans and animals in Laghouat (Southern Algeria), Veterinary World, 16(2): 357–368.

Received: 08-08-2022 Accepted: 06-01-2023 Published online: 24-02-2023

Corresponding author: Mohammed Hocine Benaissa E-mail: ben.medhocine@gmail.com

DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2023.357-368

Copyright: Benlarbi, et al. This article 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, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.