A review of documented antimicrobial and immunomodulatory properties of six selected ethnomedicinal plants, used as a concoction by traditional health practitioners for the management of urinary tract infections, in the region of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Abstract

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common bacterial infections across the globe, indicated by significant bacterial growth and presence of microbial pathogens anywhere along the urinary tract with associated symptoms. Due to the alarming global increase of antibiotic-resistant bacteria resulting in antibiotic therapy failures, a need for new ethnobotanical species has redirected research towards assessing locally available medicinal plants and their respective crude extracts which contain novel bioactive derivatives. The World Health Organization (WHO) has rendered traditional medicine as a safe and effective alternative for treating various illnesses and infections based on the scientific evidence that these medicinal plants are scientifically tested for efficacy and adverse side-effects through rigorous research, testing and clinical trials. South African traditional health practitioners (THPs) in the eThekwini Municipality promote the use of Euclea crispa, Curtisia dentata, Manihot esculenta, Bulbine natalensis, Catha edulis and Eucomis bicolor as single preparations with antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, wound healing, and immunomodulatory properties in the treatment of various illnesses and together as a traditional concoction towards the treatment of UTIs. Literature reviewed in this article, reflects the presence of triterpenoids, oleanolic acid, tannins, flavonoids, alkaloids, anthocyanosides, bulbnatalonosides, sterols, homoisoflavonoids, saponins, cyclooxygenases within these ethnomedicinal species and their action against uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC), K. pneumoniae, E. faecalis, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus and C. albicans. Hence these six South African medicinal plants can be considered as strong contenders against microbial-induced UTIs.