1. LAGOS STATE UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF SCIENCE DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY
TOPIC: TEPHROSIA “THE WONDER PLANT” BY
JEGEDE OPEYEMI
A SEMINAR SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT
OF BOTANY, FACULTY OF SCIENCE, LAGOS STATE UNIVERSITY, OJO, LAGOS. IN PARTIAL FULLFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF Bsc. (Hons.)
12th April,2012

2. Geographical distribution Systematic classification Active principles
OUTLINE
Introduction
General description
Geographical distribution
Systematic classification
Active principles
Ethnomedicinal uses
Other uses
Conclusion.

3. INTRODUCTION
Medicinal plants have been known to cure a lot of diseases for centuries. Its use is not limited to the cure of just human diseases but animal diseases.
Almost one-quarter of all medicines are derived from the 250,000 flowering plants on the earth’s surface.
Tephrosia spp. belongs to the family, Fabaceae(pea family) which consist of about 400spp.
The generic name is derived from the Greek word τεφρος (tephros), meaning "ash-colored," referring to the greyish tint given to the leaves by their dense trichomes. (Zafar et al, 2000)(Quattrocchi 2000).
Members of the family Fabaceae are well known to be rich sources of tephrorin, tephrosone, flavonoids and mostly rotenoids which is an interesting class of compound showing mainly activity against insects, and have also shown toxic activity on fish.(Cesar et al.,2002).

4. GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF Tephrosia
Tephrosia is a postrate or erect perennial herbs or soft or woody shrub; rarely annuals , the leaves are pinnate with opposite or slightly alternate leaflet and a terminal leaflet, lacking stipels, rarely with three leaflet or with a single leaflet.
The leaflet are opposite, often silky, entire, usually narrow at the base and widest above the middle.
Trichomes are found almost all over the plant part except the root. It is found both on abaxial and adaxial part of the leaf in most Tephrosia species but found only at the abaxial part of T. bracteolata.
The flowers are small or quite large, pink to purple, less commonly orange or yellow, lacking bracteoles, hairy on the back, stamens 10 or 9 filaments joined on a dorsally split tube, 1 or more or less free.

5. GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
FIG 1:Maps showing the distribution of Tephrosia spp.
Source: google.com

6. Geographical distribution cont’d
Tephrosia is native to tropical Africa, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Democrand major parts of the world some of which include; Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundiatic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome et, Principe, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo,Zambia, Zanzibar, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Bolivia, Brazil, Brunei, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Mexico, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Surinam, Thailand, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam and so on.
It can also be found growing naturally in widely varying habitats, including savannah-like vegetation, grassland, forest margins and shrubland, wasteland and fallow fields.

7. SYSTEMIC CLASSIFICATION
Kingdom: Plantae
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Subclass: Rosidae
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Tephrosia - (hoarypea)
Specie: Tephrosia spp

8. FIG 2 :Tephrosia purpurea FIG 3:Tephrosia vogelii
Source: wikipedia. org

9. Source: www.wikipedia.org
FIG 4:Tephrosia virginiana
FIG 5:Tephrosia rosea
Source:

10. ACTIVE PRINCIPLES

11. ETHNOMEDICINAL USES
Many ethnomedicinal uses have been advocated for this plant. Some of which includes;
Prophylaxis: Extract of the leaves has been used in its treating diarrhoea, whooping cough, fevers, rickets, and syphilis. (Kerharo et al 1964).
Tonic and Laxative: The roots and leaves are recommended as purgative and emetic. (Burkill, 1995).
Skin disorders: The seed oil is used in the treatment of boils and pimples, scabies, eczema and other eruptions of the skin. (Chadha et al, 1976).
Pain killer and Anti-inflammatory: The seed pod is used by extraction and administered for pain and inflammation.
Abortifacient: The hot water extract of the bark, leaf and unripe fruit has been used to induce abortion in pregnant women acting to kill the foetus. (Walker and Sillans, 1961).
Treatment of Amenorrhea: The hot water extract of the leaf is drunk to induce menses. (Haaf, 1971).

12. Medicament for Bone setting: Ground leaves and stem bark are mixed with vegetable oil and rubbed on the skin around fractured limb (Ekpendu et al, 1998).
Treatment of fungal infections: Roots are boiled in water and when warm, feet with localized fungal infections are immersed therein for some minutes (Ekpendu et al, 1998).
Diuretic and blood purifier: The dried plant is recommended as a blood purifier and as a diuretic and as a gargle, and internally for coughs and cold (Ainslie, 1937).
Anthelminthic: Stems and roots of the plant have been shown to be toxic to Bulinus globulus, a fresh water snail vector of schistosomosis (Adewunmi 1980).
Treatment of snake bites: Brushing the teeth daily with the stick(root) of Tephrosia purpurea will make the body resistant against the snake venom (Jain and Tarafder, 1963).

13. OTHER USES
Extracts of the leaf, bark, root, seed and or flower of T. vogelii possess numerous biological activities. Some of which includes;
Molluscicidal activity: The water extract of the dried leaf possessed molluscicidal activity against Bulinus globosus (Chiotha and Msonthi, 1986).
Antimicrobial activity: Ethanol (80%) extract of the dried fruit showed antiviral activity against measles virus on cell culture (Vlietinck et al, 1995).
Piscicidal activity: The hot water extract of the leaf showed piscicidal activity against goldfish, Cerassius auratus (Chadha, 1976).
Insecticidal activity: Acetone extract of the leaf showed feeding deterrent activity against the insect, Pieris rapae (Shin, 1989).
Anthelminthic activity: The methanolic leaf extract showed anthelminthic activity against Nippostrongylus braziliensis (Edeki, 1997).
Pesticidal activity: T. vogelii can also be used for the protection of stored grain against pests since rotenone breaks down within days after application thereby leaving no residues unlike most synthetic pesticides (Blommaert, 1950).

14. Source: wikipedia.org FIG 6: Rotenone introduced into a water body
FIG 7:A paralyzed fish.
Source: wikipedia.org

15. CONCLUSION
The genus Tephrosia contains many active principles of toxicological importance, which can be used in the control of pests. The plant also possesses great potential for use in therapy and prophylactics of human and livestock diseases. The toxic principles are easily degradable in the environment and are selectively toxic to fish and insects.

16. THANKS FOR LISTENING