By Haruna Vinina , Michael Uligit and Abdullahi Sulaiman
In a world dominated by modern medicine, the resurgence of interest in phytomedicine or plant based medicine is illuminating the healing potential found within nature’s bounty.
The word “phyto” means “plants’ ‘, and phytomedicine basically means the use of plants and herbs for medicinal purposes. It found its roots in the old – century traditions, embedded in ancient healing practices across cultures worldwide.
The preliminary sources of traditional use of herbs and plants dates back to around 3000 BC. Sheng Nong’s herbal book is known as one of the preliminary sources of traditional folk knowledge based on the use of herbs and plants in China.
Today the university of Jos has an African Center of Excellence in phytomedicine Research and Development (ACEPRD) founded in 2013 and was fully established in 2014. The center which is now being headed by Professor Abraham Dogo, who is the third Director the center has witnessed since its establishment.
Professor Abraham Dogo has used nature’s healing powers in phytomedicine to invent products like shampoo using aloe Vera, rosemary amongst others. The center also trains traditional healers, Masters students, Staff on the biochemical complexity of plant compounds and how to use and extract the components needed in the production of phytomedicine products. As revealed by the Director, Guava, cashew, paw-paw, Neem seeds, Neem leaves are few amongst the common plants used for phytomedicine.
The university Research Center for phytomedicine is researching to develop and enhance an anti-snake vaccine with the collaboration of National office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), National Agency for Food and Drugs Commission (NAFDAC) and other Universities research centers.
The collaboration with the former Chief of Army Staff of Nigeria Yusuf Tukur Buratai research center in Abuja is to investigate how cashew can be used to counter snake bite using Mr. Tukur’s snake farm as a spacement to check the effectiveness of the cashew to neutralize the venom of species of snakes in Nigeria.
However, the University of Jos Phytomedicine center is not without challenges. Professor Dogo in an exclusive interview with Unijos Echo, stated that one of the centers main challenges amongst others are funding and insecurity. He revealed that foreign partners cannot visit the country to partner and work with them as result of insecurity in the country. He furthered disclosed that Phytomedicine can be a valuable asset in addressing some of the challenges facing phytomedicine research by fostering collaboration between academia, traditional healers and the public.
In addition, the University of Jos Phytomedicine research center solicits community engagement with local communities to understand traditional practices and share findings, while also actively promote the benefits of phytomedicine. With the advancement in scientific research,it is believed that it has shed more light on the biochemical complexity of plant compounds.
