Elephantorrhiza elephantina: Traditional Uses, Phytochemistry, and Pharmacology of an Important Medicinal Plant Species in Southern Africa

Abstract

Elephantorrhiza elephantinais used in southern Africa as traditional remedy for a wide range of human diseases and ailments including dermatological diseases, gastrointestinal system disorders, sexual dysfunction, sexually transmitted infections, and wounds. The rhizome decoction ofE. elephantinais widely used by small-scale farmers in Botswana and South Africa as ethnoveterinary medicine for cattle, goats, horses, pigs, poultry, and sheep. Several classes of phytochemical compounds including anthocyanidins, anthraquinones, esters, fatty acids, phenolic compounds, flavonoids, glycosides, polysterols, saponins, sugars, tannins, and triterpenoids have been isolated fromE. elephantina. Scientific studies onE. elephantinaindicate that it has a wide range of biological activities including anthelmintic, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive, antiplasmodial, antioxidant, antibabesial, and antirickettsial activities.Elephantorrhiza elephantinais a valuable source of traditional medicine in southern Africa that it is worth additional research attention because of its wide ethnomedicinal applications and promising biological activities. However, the current health-related information onE. elephantinais not sufficiently explored as diverse studies on its chemical and pharmacological activities are required to understand its mechanism of action and to characterize the metabolites responsible for these activities.