Common Name:

General Information

Strychnos myrtoides is a much-branched shrub or small tree growing from 1 - 5 metres tall[, ]. The bole can be 15cm in diameter[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine.

Known Hazards

Various parts of Strychnos plants, especially the seeds and bark, contain toxic alkaloids such as strychnine and brucine. The fleshy pulp of the ripe fruits, however, is often edible[].

Botanical References

Range

East tropical Africa - Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar.

Habitat

Brachystegia-woodlands, open forest and savannah woodland; at elevations from sea-level up to 600 metres[, ].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Habit	Tree
Height	3.50 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Not known

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

An infusion or decoction of the stem bark works synergistically with chloroquine in the treatment of malaria[].

Two major indole alkaloids, strychnobrasiline and malagashanine, were isolated from the stem bark, as well as 4 minor alkaloids: malagashanol, 12-hydroxy-19-epi-malagashanine, myrtoidine and 11-demethoxymyrtoidine. These compounds showed no intrinsic antimalarial effect against a chloroquine-resistant strain of Plasmodium falciparum in vitro and in vivo, but significantly enhanced the effect of chloroquine. No cytotoxicity was observed[].
A crude stem-bark extract also showed no intrinsic antimalarial effects, but significantly enhanced the action of chloroquine both in vitro and in vivo against a chloroquine-resistant Plasmodium yoelii strain in mice[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -

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