ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on the concepts covered in the preceding chapters of this book. The book provides an overview of the disease malaria, epidemiology and implications on public health, the Plasmodium life cycle, and signs and symptoms associated with malaria. It explains available antimalarial agents, listed according to the chemical classes with information on the modes of action, and examples of drugs and combination therapies. The book also provides an overview to research carried out on medicinal plants used for malaria, in particular ethnobotanical surveys, and an extensive compilation of more than 1800 medicinal plants reportedly used for malaria. It draws on four selected antimalarial herbs, namely, Artemisia annua, Cinchona bark, Dichroa febrifuga, and Vernonia amygdalina. Medicinal plants are important sources of novel chemical scaffolds, as seen from how Artemisia annua and Cinchona bark have revolutionized malaria chemotherapy and prophylaxis.
