Toxicity of infant soft porridge formulated with traditional medicinal plants in the Mopani and Vhembe District Municipalities in Limpopo Province

Abstract

Traditional medicine practice is an integral part of the Bapedi, Vatsonga, and Vhavenda cul-tures in the Limpopo province, South Africa. Caregivers, elderly women, and traditional heal-ers use porridge prepared with medicinal plant concoctions to treat various ailments in infants; however, studies have also shown that these plants can be toxic when used in high doses or for prolonged periods in infants. Therefore, the study aimed to document the medicinal plants used in infant soft porridge, including their methods of preparation, administration, and dos-age, and to determine their toxicity on renal cells. The study conducted semi-structured inter-views with caregivers, elderly women, and traditional healers in the Mopani and Vhembe Dis-trict Municipality, Limpopo province, South Africa. Participants were selected using the snow-ball technique. Cytotoxicity assays of five commonly used plants for the preparation of soft porridge were conducted using the MTT assay against the African monkey kidney cell line (Vero cells). A total of one hundred and seven (107) medicinal plants were documented and only 46 medicinal plants were used in the preparation of soft porridge such as Combretum molle R.Br. ex G.Don., Artabotrys brachypetalus Benth., Xylopia odoratissima Welw.ex Oliv., Annona senegalensis Pers. These plants were used for stomach issues, fontanelle-related illnesses, and boosting the immune system. The commonly used plant parts were roots, leaves, and bark, which were mostly administered orally as decoctions or infusions or with soft porridge. MTT assay revealed that Bauhinia galpinii N.E.Br., Solanum panduriforme E. Mey. ex Dunal. and Artabotrys brachypetalus Benth., displayed only mild reductions, retaining >73.84 %, 85.73 % and > 94.46 % cell viability at 500 μg/mL, respectively, all with IC50 >500 μg/mL. Combretum molle R.Br. ex G.Don., showed a clearer progressive decline to 48.61 ± 1.51 % viability at 500 μg/mL (IC50 of 476.76 μg/mL). Gymnosporia buxifolia (L.) exhibited the most marked effect, dropping to a nadir of 42.38 ± 1.31 % at 300 μg/mL before a partial re-bound to 62.52 ± 6.38 % at 500 μg/mL (IC50 of 276.49 μg/mL). These results highlighted the importance of medicinal plants used with soft porridge in addressing infant-related illnesses among the Bapedi, Vatsonga and Vhavenda communities of Limpopo province. However, the varying toxicities of some of these plants raise concerns about their continued use in infants and children. Therefore, the study's findings support future scientific validation of the plants and the preservation of indigenous knowledge.