Ethnopharmacological Survey of Euphorbia resinifera in the

Ethnopharmacological Survey of Euphorbia resinifera in the Atlas Mountains of Azilal-

Beni Mellal, Morocco Abderrazak EL ALAMIab*, Abderrazzak FATTAHc, Rachida Aboufatimad, Abderrahman CHAITa

aLaboratory of Pharmacology, Neurobiology, Anthropobiology and Environment, Faculty of Sciences Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco.

bKhawarezmi High School, Academy of Education and Training of Beni Mellal-Khenifra, Ministry of National Education, Vocational Training, Higher Education and Scientific Research of Morocco.

cLaboratory of Bio-Geosciences and Materials Engineering, Higher Normal School, Hassan II University, Casablanca, Morocco.

dLaboratory of Genie Biology, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, Sultan Moulay Slimane University, Beni Mellal, Morocco.

Email: [email protected]

ABSTRACT - Background: Euphorbia resinifera is an endemic plant to Morocco. It is well known for its innumerable benefits and for its high toxicity. In Morocco and Algeria, the plant is used to treat many diseases such as cancer, rheumatism, cyst and snake bite poisoning.

Method: The current work focuses on the study of therapeutic uses of E. resinifera and of honey attributed to this plant in the Atlas Mountains of Azilal-Beni Mellal, Morocco. Information was obtained through interviews with local people in the study area. Then, information on the most abundant secondary metabolites and on biological activities of the study species was collected.

Results: Results of interviews showed that 28% of the interviewees used E. resinifera for therapeutic purposes. A total of 91% of the interviewees used honey made from the resin spurge to prevent diseases and 17% of the interviewees used it for therapeutic purposes. Results showed that in this area, E. Resinifera is used mainly to treat different categories of cancers. In addition, preparations of different parts of the plant and its honey were given orally to treat intoxications, envenomation caused by scorpions and snakes, and many genital, respiratory, circulatory, metabolic and infectious diseases.

Conclusion: The resin spurge and honey made from it have innumerable benefits because of the diversity of the secondary metabolites which it contains. E. resinifera had great potential as a source of bioactive compounds, which may lead to the development of new drugs for clinical use.

Keywords: The resin spurge, ethnopharmacology, therapeutic uses, toxicity, Morocco.

1. INTRODUCTION

In Morocco, medicinal plants have been used for a long time against diseases. The floristic diversity of this country is a source of many plant species used in herbal medicine. The Moroccan flora has about 6 552 species: 500 species of algae, 820 fungi, 700 lichens, 619 bryophytes, 64 pteridophytes, 17 gymnosperms and 3832 angiosperms [1,2,3]. The researchers counted more than 600 plants used in herbal medicine in Morocco [4]. This richness and diversity of medicinal flora is accompanied by the acquisition of important knowledge on the treatment of diseases by plants over millennia. In the Moroccan Atlas Mountains of Azilal-Beni Mellal, the use of medicinal plants is an important part of the cultural diversity of human populations. Our previous works reported that 172 medicinal plants are used for therapeutic purposes [5,6]. In this area, five species belonging to the Euphorbiaceae family are mostly used in herbal medicine: Euphorbia resinifera, Euphorbia falcata, Euphorbia helioscopia, Mercurialis annua and Ricinus communis [6]. Plants in the family of Euphorbiaceae are well known for the chemical diversity of their isoprenoid constituents and the Euphorbia genus is known to contain a wide variety of terpenoids, ranging from mono-, sesqui-, and diterpenes to triterpenoids and steroids [7]. The resin spurge Euphorbia resinifera Berg is well known by Moroccans for its innumerable benefits and for its high toxicity. This species is endemic to Morocco, where occurs only in the regions of Azilal and Beni Mellal. It is a thorny plant and is a shrub forming multi-stemmed cushion-shaped clumps up to one meter. The latex of this plant is widely used by local people for therapeutic uses. In Morocco and Algeria, the plant is used to treat many diseases such as cancer, rheumatism, cyst and snake bite poisoning [8,9].

Abderrazak EL Alami et al. / International Journal of Pharma Sciences and Research (IJPSR)

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Since 2012, we started collecting data on medicinal plants in the central High Atlas of Morocco. The results of ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological surveys have been published [5,6,10,11]. The current work focuses on the study of therapeutic uses of E. resinifera and of honey attributed to this plant in the Atlas Mountains of Azilal-Beni Mellal, Morocco. Information was obtained through interviews with local people in the study area. Then, information on the most abundant secondary metabolites and on biological activities of the study species was collected.

2. MATERIALS AND METHODS

2.1 Study area

The study was conducted in the Mountains of Azilal-Beni Mellal (Fig. 1). This area has a rich and varied biological diversity. The terrain, mainly calcareous, consists of steep mountain slopes and rocky gorges dissected by swiftly running streams. Altitudes between 600 m and 2400 m and the climate varies from semi-arid to sub-humid [12,13,14]. The study area has a Mediterranean climate with four distinct seasons: winter, spring, summer, and autumn, and the annual mean rainfall ranges between 429 and 853 mm [14]. The habitat types in the Mountains of Azilal-Beni Mellal are principally pure forests of holm oak Quercus ilex, forests of holm oak mixed with Juniperus phoenicea, Juniperus oxycedrus, Pistacia lentiscus, Phillyrea sp. and Arbutus unedo, forest of Barbary thuya Tetraclinis articulata, forests of Aleppo pine Pinus halepensis, sparse cork oak Quercus suber and open forests of Juniperus thurifera [15]. This region contains also several other plant species as Pistacia atlantica, Acacia gummifera, Rhus pentaphylla, Ceratonia siliqua, E. resinifera and Olea europaea. The large fraction of the population comes from the Amazigh tribes of the province of Azilal, and many people come from other Moroccan provinces.

Fig. 1. Map of the central High Atlas showing the main rivers, roads and localities. The rectangle on the inset indicates the location of the

study region in the Morocco map.

2.2 Data Collection

The ethnopharmacological survey of E. resinifera is part of an extensive research project on medicinal plants and herbal medicine in the central High Atlas of Morocco. This project started on January 2012 and the results have been published in several journals [5,6,10,11]. The study about E. resinifera was conducted between January 2015 and December 2019. Simple random sampling was carried out in seven locations corresponding to the towns of Azilal, Beni Mellal and Demnate, and in the villages of Bni Ayat, Afourar, Ouaouizeght and Ouzoud (Fig. 1). Information on the use of the resin spurge and of honey attributed to this species for therapeutic purposes was obtained through interviews with 148 inhabitants living in the study area. The interviewees consist of 73% of women and 27% of men; 71% are over 34 years old; and 64 % of the interviewees are illiterate. During the interviews, we asked each interviewee if she/he uses the resin spurge for therapeutic purposes. Then, we asked the interviewees about the plant parts used, the therapeutic uses, the preparation and use methods, and intoxication cases related to the use of this plant.


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3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

In the study area, the local name (Tamazight language) of E. resinifera is Tikiwt and it is called Zeggoum in the Moroccan Arabic dialect. Survey results showed that women, especially the older women, have valuable knowledge about the therapeutic use of the resin spurge. Results of interviews showed that 28% of the interviewees used E. resinifera for therapeutic purposes. A total of 91% of the interviewees consume honey made from the resin spurge to prevent diseases and 17% of the interviewees used it for therapeutic purposes. Results showed that in this area, E. Resinifera is used mainly to treat different categories of cancers (53% of the interviewees) (Table 1). In addition, preparations of different parts of the plant and its honey were given orally to treat intoxications, envenomation caused by scorpions and snakes, and many genital, respiratory, circulatory, metabolic and infectious diseases. The species is used also externally to treat skin diseases and snakebites and scorpion stings. The study showed that a total of 82% of the interviewees who use this plant in phytotherapy collect the use parts from the region and 18% obtained the plant from herbalists.

Table 1: Therapeutic uses of different parts of E. resinifera and of honey attributed to this plant in the Atlas Mountains of Azilal-Beni Mellal.

Plant parts Use mode Therapeutic uses

Warm water mixed with latex and honey

External use Skin inflammation

Oral Intoxications

External use and/or oral

Snakebites and scorpion stings

Powder of dried areal parts mixed with honey Oral Goiter

Small drop of latex External use

Warts

Skin cancers

Toothache

Stem (without latex or bark) and milk juice Oral

Cysts of the female genital tract

Cancer of the female genital tract

Breast cancer

Grind aerial parts mixed with honey Oral Cancers

Powder of seeds mixed with honey Oral Digestive issues

Honey Oral

Respiratory diseases (flu, asthma, allergies, etc.)

Circulatory disorders

Metabolic disorders

Digestive diseases

Diseases of the reproductive system

Headache

Weakness and yellowing

Cancers

Angina

External use Skin conditions

Many Euphorbiaceae plant preparations are used in herbal medicine. The species belonging to this family are rich in secondary substances that may be responsible for their wide traditional uses and biological effects. Some of the Euphorbiaceae extracts are registered drugs and as such available on the market [16]. The later study reported that the family of Euphorbiaceae possesses a wide variety of chemical substances including diterpenes, triterpenes, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, alkaloids, esters, ricin and phenols. The genus Euphorbia plants are rich in diterpenoids (jatrophane, lathyrane, myrsinane, tigliane, ingenane, daphnane, paraliane, pepluane, etc.), sesquiterpenoids (euphanginol, clovandiol, euphorbioside A, euphorbioside B), flavonoids (rutin, kaempferol, myricetin, quercetin and derivatives), triterpenoids (lupeol, lupeol acetate, betulin, β-amyrin), tannins and phytosterols [7]. The main bioactive compounds in different parts of E. Resinifera are given in the table 2. This plant contains many biologically active compounds including tannins, alkaloids, flavonoids, saponosides, phenolic compounds, terpenoids, coumarins and cardiac glycosides.


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Table 2: Main bioactive compounds in different parts of E. resinifera.

Plant parts Bioactive compounds References

Dried latex (-)-Quinic acid, D(+)-α-hydroxyglutaric acid, myoinositol and L(-)-inositol.

[17]

Latex Resiniferatoxin [18]

Aerial part Tannins, alkaloids and flavonoids. [19]

Aerial part Alkaloids, flavonoids and saponosides. [8,20]

All organs of the plant

Phenolic compounds, flavonoids, tannins, terpenoids, coumarins and cardiac glycosides.

[21]

Latex Euphorol A-D (1-4), H (8) and I (9); Euphorol E-G (5-7) [22]

Aerial part 18 structurally diverse diterpenoids, including 14 new ingol-type diterpenoids, euphorblins A-N (1-14).

[23]

Latex Euphoresins A and B [24]

Dried latex Euphorol K, euphorol J and kansuinone [25]

Latex Protease (EuRP-61) [26]

Plants belonging to the genus Euphorbia have known for their antiinflammatory, antipyretic-analgesic, anticancer, antioxidant, antimicrobial, molluscicidal and antifeedant activities [7]. Several studies reported that E. Resinifera possesses interesting biological activities including antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, anticancer, cytotoxic, antiparasitic activities (Table 3).

Table 3: Main biological activities of different parts of Euphorbia resinifera and of honey from this plant.

Plant parts Most relevant biological activities References

Aerial part

Antibacterial, antifungal and antioxidant activities. [8]

Antioxidant Activity [20]

Large antimicrobial spectrum. [19]

Latex

Anticancer activity [27]

Cytotoxic effect [24,25]

Antiparasitic effects [28]

Roots Antimicrobial and antioxidant activities [21]

Honey Antimicrobial activities. [29]

Antibacterial and antifungal activities [30,31]

In Morocco, honey from E. resinifera is known for their therapeutic and medicinal activities. Although many categories of honey are sold as resin spurge honey, many studies showed that these honeys have low percentages of E. resinifera pollen grains and elements of honeydew. One study reported that the precocity of the flowering of E. resinifera has negatively influenced its nectar production, its attraction for bees, and its contribution to the elaboration of honey [32]. But the majority of honey types from medicinal plants possesses important biological activities. For example, honey types made from Thymus broussonetti Boiss, Origanum vulgare, Eucalyptus globulus and Euphorbia resinifera have a large antimicrobial spectrum. Another study reported that samples of euphorbia honey collected in the region of Azilal-Beni Mellal present good commercial quality parameters, a good sanitary quality and are safe [33].

Interview results showed that this plant, especially the latex, is responsible for various disorders and intoxications including skin and buccal mucosa irritation, burning sensation in the eyes and mouth, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, dizziness, neurological disorders, and urinary and respiratory problems. No cases of intoxication related to the use of the E. resinifera honey have been reported during this study. Several studies showed that the study species may contain toxic substances which can cause a wide variety of intoxications and disorders. E. resinifera is a very toxic plant. Najem et al. [34] reported a toxicity percent of 100% in the central Middle Atlas of Morocco. The plant is toxic because of the resiniferatoxin it contains. This substance is a potent functional analog of capsaicin and its primary action is to activate sensory neurons responsible for the perception of pain. Several researches showed that the ingestion of high quantities of this substance may be fatal or cause


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serious damage to health [35]. This spurge contains also cardiac glycosides. These compounds can sides affect the cardiovascular, neurologic, and gastrointestinal systems. For example, cardiac glycosides affect the sodium-potassium ATPase pump in cardiac muscle cells and alter their function [36].

4. CONCLUSION

Herbal medicine played an important role in traditional medicine for the treatment of diseases in Morocco. E. resinifera is a plant well known for its applications, especially the latex, in herbal medicine around Morocco. In the Mountains of Azilal-Beni Mellal, this plant is mainly used to treat intoxications, envenomation caused by scorpions and snakes, and many genital, respiratory, circulatory, metabolic, infectious diseases, skin diseases and snakebites and scorpion stings. It is rich in secondary substances that may be responsible for their wide traditional uses and biological effects. But this species is responsible for various disorders and intoxications. E. resinifera had great potential as a source of bioactive compounds, which may lead to the development of new drugs for clinical use.

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Ethnopharmacological Survey of Euphorbia resinifera in the