Preventive chemotherapy with praziquantel is the mainstay of schistosomiasis control. However, drug resistance is an imminent threat, particularly with large-scale administration of praziquantel, in addition to much less efficacy against young schistosomes. Several biological activities of limonin have been explored such as insecticidal, insect antifeedant, and growth-regulating activity on insects as well as antimalarial, antiviral, anticancer, cholesterol-lowering, and antioxidant activities. This study investigates limonin as an alternative antischistosomal compound using two novel, single, oral dose regimens. In the current work, the therapeutic efficacy of different limonin dosing protocols was evaluated in experimentally infected mice harboring Schistosoma mansoni (Egyptian strain) juvenile or adult stages. Oral administration of limonin in a single dose of 50 or 100 mg/kg on day 21 post-infection (p.i.) resulted in a significant worm burden reduction of 70.0 and 83.33 %, respectively. The same dose given on day 56 p.i. reduced total worm burdens by 41.09 and 60.27 %, respectively. In addition, significant reductions of 34.90 and 47.16 % in the hepatic and 46.67 and 56.1 % in the intestinal tissue egg loads, respectively, associated with significant alterations in the oogram pattern with elevated dead egg levels. Limonin produced ameliorations of hepatic pathology with reduction in dimensions and number of granulomas. Limonin also produced a variety of tegumental alterations in treated worms including tubercular disruption, edema, blebbing, and ulcerations. Results obtained by this work elucidated promising limonin bioactivity against S. mansoni juvenile and adult stages and provided a basis for subsequent experimental and clinical trials.

The current work was undertaken to investigate the potential effectiveness of Thymus vulgaris ethanolic extract (TVE) against Toxoplasma gondii infection in chronic experimental toxoplasmosis. To evaluate prophylactic effects, mice received 500 mg/kg TVE for 5 days before they were infected by an avirulent Me49 T. gondii strain. To investigate the therapeutic effects of the extract postinfection, daily treatment with TVE was initiated at 6 weeks postinfection and continued for 10 days. The following groups of animals were used as controls: uninfected/non-treated, infected/non-treated, and infected/treated with a combination of pyrimethamine and sulfadiazine. Brain cyst count and histopathological changes using H&E and Feulgen stains were used to evaluate the efficacy of TVE. The mean number of brain cysts was significantly decreased by 24 % in mice treated prophylactically with TVE. TVE also significantly reduced the mean number of brain cysts when administered to animals already chronically infected with T. gondii. The effect of TVE was comparable to that of treatment with a mixture of sulfadiazine and pyrimethamine (46 and 51 % reduction, respectively). Moreover, considerable amelioration of the pathological lesions in the brain and retina was observed. The results demonstrate the potential efficacy of T. vulgaris as a new natural therapeutic and prophylactic agent for use in the treatment of chronic toxoplasmosis.

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Background: Garlic has a wide range of actions, including antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antiprotozoal and antihelminthic actions. This antiparasitic activity has been attributed to allicin, which is the main constituent of garlic. The aim: is to evaluate the potential therapeutic and/or prophylactic effects of allicin on S. mansoni. Method: Swiss albino mice strain CD1were infected with S. mansoni cercariae and sacrificed 40 days later to acquire the adult worms. These worms were collected by perfusion and placed in RPMI medium 1640 at 37°C before transferring to RPMI media containing 0 (control), 5, 10 and 100µg/ml of allicin, where they were incubated for 48h and monitored during this time to evaluate motility and mortality rate by means of stereomicroscope. Twenty male Swiss albino mice strain CD1were divided into two groups. One group was infected with S. mansoni cercariae and treated with allicin one week post infection. The second group was (control). Results: In vitro incubation of S. mansoni adult worms with allicin, showed a statistically high significant difference in comparison with control non-treated group. All worms showed slow movement after 48 h of incubation at concentration of 100µg/ml. No effect was noticed at allicin concentrations of 10 and 5 µg/ml at the end of the experiment. Administration of allicin to the infected mice had non-significant effect on the worm burden. Conclusion: allicin was effective against adult S. mansoni worms in vitro, but with no significant effect in vivo.