DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF TOPICAL PHYTOFORMULATIONS OF IPOMOEA SHUPANGENSIS (KASUNUNGURE) FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF MULTIDRUG-RESISTANT BACTERIAL INFECTIONS IN DIABETIC FOOT ULCERS: AN INTEGRATED ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL AND PHARMACEUTICAL APPROACH

Ipomoea shupangensis (Kasunungure) is used by traditional healers in Gokwe, Zimbabwe for diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs), which are frequently complicated by multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens. Scientific validation of its phytochemistry, pharmacological activity, and safety was previously lacking. This study integrated an ethnopharmacological survey (40 healers), maceration extraction (five solvents, three plant parts), qualitative phytochemical screening, total phenolic content (TPC) quantification, DPPH antioxidant and albumin denaturation anti-inflammatory assays, antibacterial testing against clinical MDR isolates (MRSA, P. aeruginosa, ESBL E. coli), OECD safety evaluation, and development of an Antiseptic Solution (2% w/v) and Dusting Powder (5% w/w). All 40 healers (100%) identified stem bark as the most potent plant part. The 70% ethanol stem extract showed the highest TPC (145.3 ± 6.2 mg GAE/g), strongest antioxidant activity (DPPH IC₅₀ 42.7 µg/mL), notable anti-inflammatory activity (IC₅₀ 385.2 µg/mL), and the lowest MIC values against MRSA (31.3 µg/mL), P. aeruginosa (62.5 µg/mL), and E. coli (125 µg/mL), with MBC/MIC ratios of 2 (bactericidal) and Hill slopes exceeding 2.5. Time-kill assays achieved MRSA sterilisation within 4 hours at 4× MIC, and disk diffusion zones (36.2 mm) exceeded ciprofloxacin (28.5 mm; p<0.01). OECD 404 and 423 testing indicated non-irritancy (PII = 0.0) and practical non-toxicity (LD₅₀ >2000 mg/kg). Both formulations met pharmacopoeial specifications and remained stable for six months under ICH Q1A(R2) conditions. These preclinical findings support the extract as a promising candidate for further development as an affordable topical phytomedicine against MDR-infected DFUs, pending chromatographic standardisation, synergy and formulation-level testing, and in-vivo and clinical evaluation. (Abstract now 234 words; journal limit 150–250.).