Plants Used for Tick and Tick-Borne Disease Control in South Africa: Ethnoveterinary Knowledge, Bioactivity Evidence, and Translation Pathways.

Tsireledzo Goodwill Makwarela, Nimmi Seoraj-Pillai, Dikeledi Petunia Malatji, Tshifhiwa Constance Nangammbi

Abstract readReview

In one paragraph

Review in Plants (Basel, Switzerland), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

1citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

Ticks: Biology, Habitat, Threats and Protection Methods.Biology · 2026
Review

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Tsireledzo Goodwill MakwarelaDepartment of Nature Conservation, Faculty of Science, Tshwane University of Technology, Staatsartillerie Rd, Pretoria West, Pretoria 0183, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0001-9929-1722

Nimmi Seoraj-PillaiDepartment of Nature Conservation, Faculty of Science, Tshwane University of Technology, Staatsartillerie Rd, Pretoria West, Pretoria 0183, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-4851-8576

Dikeledi Petunia MalatjiDepartment of Agriculture and Animal Health, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa, Florida Campus, Roodepoort 1710, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-8265-4213

Tshifhiwa Constance NangammbiDepartment of Nature Conservation, Faculty of Science, Tshwane University of Technology, Staatsartillerie Rd, Pretoria West, Pretoria 0183, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0001-8039-3251

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Ticks and tick-borne diseases (TBDs) impose a heavy burden on South African livestock systems, particularly in resource-limited communal areas. Conventional acaricides are effective but face rising challenges of resistance, high costs, and concerns for environmental and human health. As a result, there is growing interest in plant-based tick control rooted in ethnoveterinary knowledge. This review examines the landscape of South African ethnoveterinary practices for tick control and assesses the supporting evidence of bioactivity and pathways for translating these remedies into safe, registered products. A narrative review method was applied, drawing on the literature (2000-2025) from databases and local repositories, with emphasis on South African studies documenting plant use against ticks. Communities in Limpopo, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and other provinces utilise a diverse range of botanicals (e.g.,

Indexed as

acaricide safetyAct 36 of 1947botanical acaricidesethnoveterinary medicineLippia javanicalivestock healthone healthplant-based repellentsSouth Africatick control

Identifiers

PMID41470604

DOI10.3390/plants14243720

PMCPMC12737041

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.