The objective of this study was to document the plants used in traditional cough treatment for children and to conduct a phytochemical study of the two most used plants. An ethnobotanical survey was conducted among traditional sellers in the markets of Bamako. A phytochemical screening based on classic color reaction and tube precipitation methods was performed. Aluminum trichloride was used to quantify flavonoids, whereas the Folin-Ciocalteu method was utilized to quantify total polyphenols. The anti-protein denaturation method was used to assess the extracts' anti-inflammatory properties. In total, fifty-six (56) participants, including 42 women and 14 men, were interviewed. The survey inventoried seventeen (17) antitussive plant species belonging to 14 botanical families. Sericanthe chevalieri and Ceiba pentandra were the most frequently cited species. Phytochemical screening of these two plants revealed the presence of many major chemical groups such as alkaloids, terpenes, coumarins, tannins, saponins, and flavonoids. Macerated extracts (hydroethanolic and aqueous) exhibited the highest levels of phenolic and flavonoid compounds in both plants. The best anti-inflammatory potential, indicated by the degree of anti-protein denaturation, was observed in the hydroethanolic extracts, with an IC50 of 263.48±20.80 µg/mL for S. chevalieri and 420.30±19.80 µg/mL for C. pentandra. This study demonstrates that the extracts of C. pentandra and S. chevalieri are rich in bioactive substances with significant anti-inflammatory potential, which may confer them antitussive properties.
IJPRAS
