| Malaria is one of the life-threatening parasitic diseases that is endemic in tropical
areas. The increased prevalence of malaria due to drug resistance leads to a high
incidence of mortality. Drug discovery based on natural products and secondary
metabolites is considered as alternative approaches for antimalarial therapy. Herbal
medicines have advantages over modern medicines, including fewer side effects,
cost-effectiveness, and affordability encouraging the herbal-based drug discovery.
Several naturally occurring, semisynthetic, and synthetic antimalarial medications
are on the market. For example, chloroquine is a synthetic medication for antimalarial
therapy derived from quinine. Moreover, artemisinin, and its derivative,
artesunate with sesquiterpene lactone backbone, is an antimalarial agent originated
from Artemisia annua L. A. annua traditionally has been used to detoxify blood and
eliminate fever in China. Although the artemisinin-based combination therapy
against malaria has shown exceptional responses, the limited medicinal options
demand novel therapeutics. Furthermore, drug resistance is the cause in most
cases, and new medications are proposed to overcome the resistance. In addition
to conventional therapeutics, this review covers some important genera in this area,
including Artemisia, Cinchona, Cryptolepis, and Tabebuia, whose antimalarial activities
are finely verified. |