Antimalarial Activity of Aqueous and 80% Methanol Crude Seed Extracts and Solvent Fractions of Schinus molle Linnaeus (Anacardiaceae) in Plasmodium berghei-Infected Mice

Abstract

Background. Malaria is among the leading causes of mortality and morbidity. Moreover, the emergence of resistance to antimalarial drugs is a major problem in controlling the disease. This makes the development of novel antimalarial drugs a necessity. Medicinal plants are important sources in discovering antimalarial drugs. Schinus molle is claimed for its antimalarial effect in Ethiopian folkloric medicine and endowed with in vitro antiplasmodial activity. In the present study, the in vivo antimalarial activity of the plant was investigated. Methods. Acute toxicity was carried out using a standard procedure. To screen the in vivo antimalarial potential of the S. molle against Plasmodium berghei (ANKA), a 4-day suppressive test was employed. The extracts and fractions were given to infected mice by oral gavage at 100, 200, and 400 mg/kg/day for four consecutive days. Parameters such as parasitemia were then evaluated. Results. Any sign of toxicity was not observed in the oral acute toxicity test. The crude extracts and solvent fractions exerted a significant (p<0.05) inhibition of parasite load compared to the negative control. The highest inhibition (66.91%) was exhibited by the 400 mg/kg/day dose of 80% methanolic crude extract. Among the fractions, chloroform fraction demonstrated maximal chemosuppressive effect (55.60%). Moreover, crude extracts and solvent fractions prevented body weight loss, reduction in temperature, and anemia compared to the negative control. Except the aqueous fraction, the tested plant extracts were able to significantly prolong the survival time of infected mice. Conclusion. The findings of the present study confirmed the safety and a promising in vivo antimalarial activity of S. molle, thus supporting the traditional claim and in vitro efficacy. In-depth investigations on the plant, however, are highly recommended.

In vivo antimalarial activity of crude fruit extract of Capsicum frutescens var. minima (Solanaceae) against Plasmodium berghei infected mice

“…This is comparable with similar studies done on Croton macrostachyus [26] and Withania somnifera [33]. However, chemoprevention efficacy of the plant is superior to our previous report on Schinus molle [16].…”

“…Though a significant prevention of body weight loss was exhibited by crude extract, the mean value of the body weight showed reduction in treatment groups on D 4 as compared to D 0 . This could be ascribed to the inability of the extract to completely eradicate the pasrasite load [16,30]. PCV was monitored to assess the ability of the plant in ablating malaria induced hemolysis.…”

“…However, unlike CQ, the mice were not cured. This might be due to the incomplete clearance of parasite or short half-life profile of active constituents [16,26,29].…”

“…Weight and rectal temperature of each mouse were recorded just before treatment, and after treatment on D 4 . The mean percentage changes were then calculated and analyzed for each group [16,25]. In the same way, packed cell volume (PCV) was measured before inoculation and after treatment.…”

Antimicrobial Testing of Schinus molle (L.) Leaf Extracts and Fractions Followed by GC-MS Investigation of Biological Active Fractions

“…It is native to South America where it is known as the Peruvian pepper tree [12], whereas it is distributed worldwide as an ornamental plant. Many papers attribute some pharmacological proprieties to the pepper tree, such as antiproliferative [6,[13][14][15][16], antioxidant [9,14], antifungal [17,18], hypotensive [19], anti-inflammatory [20], and analgesic [21] effects, as well as antimalarial [22], acaricidal [23,24], repellent and insecticidal properties [25][26][27][28].…”