Testing beyond ethnomedical claims: Brine shrimp lethality of some Tanzanian plants

TLDR: The results indicate the possibility that some of the plant extracts may be toxic or contain useful cytotoxic compounds, which was not reported by the traditional healers.

Abstract: Extracts of 34 plants that are traditionally used for the treatment of different diseases exhibited various degrees of toxicity on brine shrimp. The concentration killing 50% (LC50) of the shrimps was below 50 μg/ml for 14 (41.2%), 50–100 μ g/ml for 10 (29.4%), and greater than 100 μg/ml for 10 (29.4%) of the plants, respectively. Dalbergia nitidula (LC50 0.87 μg/ml), Ozoroa insignis (LC50 2.21 μg/ml), Markhamia obtusifolia (LC50 8.94 μg/ml), Ximenia caffra (LC50 11.25 μg/ml),Croton macrostachys (LC50 13.40 μg/ml), and Mormodica calantha (LC50 19.38 μg/ml) were the most toxic. The results indicate the possibility that some of the plant extracts may be toxic or contain useful cytotoxic compounds, which was not reported by the traditional healers.