Critical review of the Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal: ethnobotany, pharmacological efficacy, and commercialization significance in Africa

Henok Kessete Afewerky^{1

2

3

4}, Ayeni Emmanuel Ayodeji^{4

5}, Bashir Bolaji Tiamiyu^{4

6}, Joshua Iseoluwa Orege^{4

7

8}, Emmanuel Sunday Okeke^{4

9

10}, Aanuoluwapo Opeyemi Oyejobi^{4

11}, Petuel Ndip Ndip Bate^{4

12}, Sherif Babatunde Adeyemi^{4

6

13}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030 China.
² Department of Pathology and Pathophysiology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030 China.
³ School of Allied Health Professions, Asmara College of Health Sciences, 00291 Asmara, Eritrea.
⁴ Organization of African Academic Doctors, Nairobi, 00100 Kenya.
⁵ Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, PMB 1044, Kaduna, 800211 Nigeria.
⁶ Department of Plant Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, 240001 Nigeria.
⁷ Department of Industrial Chemistry, Ekiti State University, PMB 5363, Ado-Ekiti, 362001 Nigeria.
⁸ Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian, 116023 China.
⁹ Department of Biochemistry, FBS and Natural Science Unit, SGS, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, 410001 Nigeria.
¹⁰ School of Environment and Safety Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013 China.
¹¹ School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074 China.
¹² Guangzhou Institute of Biomedicine and Health, Guangzhou, 510530 China.
¹³ C.G. Bhakta Institute of Biotechnology, Uka Tarsadia University, Bardoli-Mahuva Road, Bardoli, Surat, Gujarat 394350 India.

PMID: 34697529
PMCID: PMC8529567
DOI: 10.1186/s42269-021-00635-6

Review

Critical review of the Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal: ethnobotany, pharmacological efficacy, and commercialization significance in Africa

Henok Kessete Afewerky et al. Bull Natl Res Cent. 2021.

. 2021;45(1):176.

doi: 10.1186/s42269-021-00635-6. Epub 2021 Oct 21.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030 China.
² Department of Pathology and Pathophysiology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030 China.
³ School of Allied Health Professions, Asmara College of Health Sciences, 00291 Asmara, Eritrea.
⁴ Organization of African Academic Doctors, Nairobi, 00100 Kenya.
⁵ Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, PMB 1044, Kaduna, 800211 Nigeria.
⁶ Department of Plant Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, 240001 Nigeria.
⁷ Department of Industrial Chemistry, Ekiti State University, PMB 5363, Ado-Ekiti, 362001 Nigeria.
⁸ Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian, 116023 China.
⁹ Department of Biochemistry, FBS and Natural Science Unit, SGS, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, 410001 Nigeria.
¹⁰ School of Environment and Safety Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013 China.
¹¹ School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074 China.
¹² Guangzhou Institute of Biomedicine and Health, Guangzhou, 510530 China.
¹³ C.G. Bhakta Institute of Biotechnology, Uka Tarsadia University, Bardoli-Mahuva Road, Bardoli, Surat, Gujarat 394350 India.

PMID: 34697529
PMCID: PMC8529567
DOI: 10.1186/s42269-021-00635-6

Abstract

Background: Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal (W. somnifera) is a herb commonly known by its English name as Winter Cherry. Africa is indigenous to many medicinal plants and natural products. However, there is inadequate documentation of medicinal plants, including W. somnifera, in Africa. There is, therefore, a need for a comprehensive compilation of research outcomes of this reviewed plant as used in traditional medicine in different regions of Africa.

Methodology: Scientific articles and publications were scooped and sourced from high-impact factor journals and filtered with relevant keywords on W. somnifera. Scientific databases, including GBIF, PubMed, NCBI, Google Scholar, Research Gate, Science Direct, SciFinder, and Web of Science, were accessed to identify the most influential articles and recent breakthroughs published on the contexts of ethnography, ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and commercialization of W. somnifera.

Results: This critical review covers the W. somnifera ethnography, phytochemistry, and ethnomedicinal usage to demonstrate the use of the plant in Africa and elsewhere to prevent or alleviate several pathophysiological conditions, including cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, reproductive impotence, as well as other chronic diseases.

Conclusion: W. somnifera is reportedly safe for administration in ethnomedicine as several research outcomes confirmed its safety status. The significance of commercializing this plant in Africa for drug development is herein thoroughly covered to provide the much-needed highlights towards its cultivations economic benefit to Africa.

Keywords: Africa; Commercialization; Ethnobotany; Ethnomedicine; Medicinal Plant; Pathophysiology; Pharmaceutics; Phytochemistry; Withania somnifera.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interestsThe authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

**Fig. 1**
Ethnographic distribution of *W. somnifera* (*Withania somnifera* (L.) Dunal in GBIF Secretariat 2021)

**Fig. 2**
Ethnomedicinal usage distribution of *W. somnifera* in African countries and the plant applications in selected countries

See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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Critical review of the Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal: ethnobotany, pharmacological efficacy, and commercialization significance in Africa

Affiliations

Critical review of the Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal: ethnobotany, pharmacological efficacy, and commercialization significance in Africa

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

Figures

References

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources