Assessment of antimalarial medicinal plants used in Nigerian ethnomedicine reveals antimalarial potential of Cucurbita pepo leaf extract

Ezeani, Chinelo; Ezenyi, Ifeoma; Erhunse, Nekpen; Sahal, Dinkar; Akunne, Theophine Chinwuba; Okoli, C. O.

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09916

Cited by 10 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…The findings from the present study are in agreement with those of the recent reports on the antimalarial potentials of ethanolic extracts of P.purpureum leaf. 15,16 In addition, other plants in the Poaceae family, including P. polystachion 17 and Cymbopogoncitratus 18 were also reported to show antiplasmodial potentials. These reports further support the antimalarial potentials of P. purpureum since they are of the same family of plants.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

In vivo Antimalarial and GC-MS Studies of Pennisetum purpureum Leaf Extract and Fractions

2022

TJNPR

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Pennisetum purpureum (elephant grass) is a plant used in ethnomedicine for malaria treatment. The present study was aimed at investigating the antimalarial potential of P. purpureum leaf and to identify its phytoconstituents. The leaves were extracted with methanol to afford the crude extract which was successively partitioned between water and n-hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate and n-butanol to afford the fractions. The acute toxicity study was done in mice. Mice were infected with Plasmodium berghei and then treated (p.o.) with the crude extract in the curative and suppressive antimalarial models at three doses (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg). Another set of infected mice was also treated orally with 200 mg/kg of each of the fractions in a suppressive model. The reference drug used for both models was artemeter/lumefantrine (7 mg/kg A/L). The most active fraction, the n-hexane fraction, was subjected to further analysis by GC-MS. The crude extract lethal dose (LD50) was established as 1702.94 mg/kg. The crude extract showed a plasmodial inhibitory activity in the range of 46.20 to 59.90% in the curative model. Both the extract and fractions displayed chemo-suppressive activity (p<0.05) in the range of 66.90 to 96.50%. The A/L produced (p<0.05) 69.00% inhibitory and 95.20% chemosuppressive activities. The results of GC-MS showed the presence of 21 compounds. It was concluded that the extract and fractions of P. purpureum displayed strong antimalarial activity in both models which provides justification for the use of the plant in traditional medicine for malarial treatment.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

In vivo Antimalarial and GC-MS Studies of Pennisetum purpureum Leaf Extract and Fractions

2022

TJNPR

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“…The antiprotozoal effect of the Cucurbita genus against numerous parasite species has been documented, including Entamoeba histolytica , Blastocystis spp., Dientamoeba fragilis , Histomonas meleagridis , Tetratrichomonas gallinarum , Plasmodium falciparum , and Giardia lamblia [ 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 ]. Furthermore, C. pepo extracts showed anthelmintic effects against Raillietina spp., Heterakis spp., Heligmosoides bakeri , Hymenolepis nana , Taenia solium , and Aspiculuris tetraptera [ 35 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effects of Coriandrum sativum L. and Cucurbita pepo L. against Gastrointestinal Parasites in Swine: An In Vivo Study

et al. 2023

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Parasitic diseases are responsible for substantial losses in reproduction and productivity in swine, creating a major impairment to efficient and profitable livestock management. The use of phytotherapeutic remedies has notably increased over the past decade due to their bioavailability, decreased toxicity, non-polluting nature, and to some extent due to their antiparasitic effect. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antiparasitic potential of Cucurbita pepo L. and Coriandrum sativum L. against protozoa and nematodes found in swine. The samples were collected from weaners, fatteners, and sows and examined via flotation (Willis and McMaster), active sedimentation, Ziehl-Neelsen staining as modified by Henricksen, a modified Blagg method, and eggs/oocyst culture. The parasite species detected were Ascaris suum, Trichuris suis, Oesophagostomum spp., Balantioides coli (syn. Balantidium coli), Eimeria spp., and Cryptosporidium spp., depending on age category. A dose of 500 mg/kg bw/day of C. pepo and 170 mg/kg bw/day of C. sativum powders, administered for ten consecutive days, demonstrated a pronounced anthelmintic (pumpkin) and antiprotozoal (coriander) effect against the aforementioned parasites. Future studies are required to ascertain the optimal dose that maximizes their antiparasitic effectiveness. The current study represents the first Romanian report on the in vivo antiparasitic activity of these two plants tested on digestive parasites in swine.

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“…However, it is important to say that those same compounds also can cause adverse issues for human health, if bad administered. These plants are widely used in ethnomedicine and some have demonstrated bioactivity in antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antimalarial, and anticancer assays" [29,30,31,32]. Species of Vernonia are gaining global attention as a possible anticancer agent.…”

Section: Ethnobotany and Ethno-medicine Observationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genus Vernonia (Asteraceae): A Promising Source of Antitumor Agents with Pharmacological Potentials

Gonzatto

Araújo²,

Albuquerque³

2022

AIR

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Antitumor research leads to the development of new molecules that act specifically in tumor cells by blocking or inhibiting their molecular targets. New therapeutic approaches for the screening of bioactive compounds present in medicinal plants have received increasing attention due to their chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic properties. In ethnomedicine, plants of the genus Vernonia (Asteraceae) are widely used and some have shown several and interesting biological activities, including anticancer. This present study aimed to document experimental evidence supporting the claimed ethnomedical uses of Vernonia species for the treatment of various types of cancer and also to confirm the anticancer potential of these plants. The compounds isolated from aqueous and alcoholic extracts, as well as fractions from different parts of Vernonia plants have acted as potential anticancer agents that inhibited the proliferation of various types of human cancer cell lines, including cervical cancer cells, melanoma cells, promyelocytic leucemia cells, breast adenocarcinoma cells, ovarian cancer, liver cancer cell, and human lung cancer cells. Studies have correlated the antitumor activity of Vernonia plants by inducing apoptosis and modulating mitochondrial signaling pathways controlled by NF-κB, Bcl-2 and p53, as well as inducing DNA damage and arresting the cell cycle at the S-phase checkpoint by oxidative stress. In conclusion, Vernonia species act as a promising source for drug development. However, further studies are needed to explore the exact mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, chronic toxicological studies, safe dose consumption, and possible interactions with other herbs.

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Assessment of antimalarial medicinal plants used in Nigerian ethnomedicine reveals antimalarial potential of Cucurbita pepo leaf extract

Cited by 10 publications

References 28 publications

In vivo Antimalarial and GC-MS Studies of Pennisetum purpureum Leaf Extract and Fractions

In vivo Antimalarial and GC-MS Studies of Pennisetum purpureum Leaf Extract and Fractions

The Effects of Coriandrum sativum L. and Cucurbita pepo L. against Gastrointestinal Parasites in Swine: An In Vivo Study

Genus Vernonia (Asteraceae): A Promising Source of Antitumor Agents with Pharmacological Potentials

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