In Vitro and in vivo Efficacy of Three Medicinal Plants on adult worms of Schistosoma mansoni

Abstract

Background: Schistosomiasis is a common disease in the tropics and subtropics. Although praziquantel (PZQ) is the drug of choice due to its high cure rates,   the development of PZQ resistance by different Schistosoma species has been observed.

Aim: This study was an attempt to find an alternative to PZQ by evaluating the activity of the raw aqueous extracts of three medicinal plants: Hagenia abyssinica (fruits), Ambrosia maritima L. (leaves) and Catunaregam atunaregam nilotica (fruit), against adult worms of Schistosoma mansoni.

Methods: In vitro, the extracts were used against adult worms in different concentrations (10000, 5000, 1000, 500, 250, 50, and 25 ppm) compared to the same concentrations of PZQ. The time of worm paralysis and worm death was determined. For the in vivo study, infected mice were divided into three groups i untreated ii PZQ-treated at dose (40 mg/kg) iii aqueous raw extracts treated at dose (1 ml of 10 000 ppm).

Results: All adult worms exposed to Catunaregam nilotica (50ppm)  in vitro, died within 20 to 25 minutes after incubation, while Hagenia abyssinica (250ppm) required 1-1.5 hours to kill all adult worms, but Ambrosiamaritima (1000 ppm) killed all adult worms within 3 hours. Mice treated with aqueous extracts of C. nilotica and praziquantel looked very healthy. The percentages of total worm burden reduction in mice treated with the aqueous extracts: C. nilotica = 55%, H. abyssinica =40.2%, A. martima = 24.2%, and praziquantel = 59%.

Conclusion: The metabolites of Catunaregam nilotica (fruit) were the most potent schistosomicidal which revealed the lowest toxic concentration that killed all worms within the shortest time. Hagenia abyssinica (fruit) and Ambrosia maritima L. (leaves)   were also safe and promising metabolites for the treatment of schistosomiasis.