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Malaria is one of the most prevalent parasitic diseases and the foremost cause of morbidity in the tropical regions of the world. Strategies for the efficient management of this parasitic infection include adequate treatment with anti-malarial therapeutics and vaccination. However, the emergence and spread of resistant strains of malaria parasites to the majority of presently used anti-malarial medications, on the other hand, complicates malaria treatment. Other shortcomings of anti-malarial drugs include poor aqueous solubility, low permeability, poor bioavailability, and non-specific targeting of intracellular parasites, resulting in high dose requirements and toxic side effects. To address these limitations, liposome-based nanotechnology has been extensively explored as a new solution in malaria management. Liposome technology improves anti-malarial drug encapsulation, bioavailability, target delivery, and controlled release, resulting in increased effectiveness, reduced resistance progression, and fewer adverse effects. Furthermore, liposomes are exploited as immunological adjuvants and antigen carriers to boost the preventive effectiveness of malaria vaccine candidates. The present review discusses the findings from studies conducted over the last 40 years (1980–2020) using in vitro and in vivo settings to assess the prophylactic and curative anti-malarial potential of liposomes containing anti-malarial agents or antigens. This paper and the discussion herein provide a useful resource for further complementary investigations and may pave the way for the research and development of several available and affordable anti-malarial-based liposomes and liposomal malaria vaccines by allowing a thorough evaluation of liposomes developed to date for the management of malaria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnopharmacological relevance Malaria is the most prevalent parasitic disease and the foremost cause of morbidity and mortality in the Democratic Republic of Congo. For the management of this disease, a large Congolese population recourses to traditional medicinal plants. To date the efficacy and safety of many of these plants have been validated scientifically in rodent malaria models. In order to generate scientific evidence of traditional remedies used in the Democratic Republic of Congo for the management of malaria, and show the potential of Congolese plants as a major source of antimalarial drugs, this review highlights the antiplasmodial and toxicological properties of the Congolese antimalarial plants investigated during the period of 1999–2014. In doing so, a useful resource for further complementary investigations is presented. Furthermore, this review may pave the way for the research and development of several available and affordable antimalarial phytomedicines. Materials and methods In order to get information on the different studies, a Google Scholar and PubMed literature search was performed using keywords (malaria, Congolese, medicinal plants, antiplasmodial/antimalarial activity, and toxicity). Data from non-indexed journals, Master and Doctoral dissertations were also collected. Results Approximately 120 extracts and fractions obtained from Congolese medicinal plants showed pronounced or good antiplasmodial activity. A number of compounds with interesting antiplasmodial properties were also isolated and identified. Some of these compounds constituted new scaffolds for the synthesis of promising antimalarial drugs. Interestingly, most of these extracts and compounds possessed high selective activity against Plasmodium parasites compared to mammalian cells. The efficacy and safety of several plant-derived products was confirmed in mice, and a good correlation was observed between in vitro and in vivo antimalarial activity. The formulation of several plant-derived products also led to some clinical trials and license of three plant-derived drugs (Manalaria ® , Nsansiphos ® , and Quinine Pharmakina ® ). Conclusion The obtained results partly justify and support the use of various medicinal plants to treat malaria in folk medicine in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Antimalarial plants used in Congolese traditional medicine represent an important source for the discovery and development of new antimalarial agents. However, in order to ensure the integration of a larger number of plant-derived products in the Congolese healthcare system, some parameters and trends should be considered in further researches, in agreement with the objectives of the “Traditional Medicine Strategy” proposed by the World Health Organization in 2013. These include evaluation of geographical and seasonal variation, investigation of reproductive biology, assessment of prophylactic antimalarial activity, evaluation of natural products as adjuvant antioxidant therapy for malaria, development of plant-based combination therapies and monitoring of herbal medicines in pharmacovigilance systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]