Nano-phytosome of Quercetin Could Protect Liver from Plasmodium Berghei in Mouse Model

Abstract

Background and purpose: Malaria is one of most important diseases especially in tropical regions. Flavonoids are known to have beneficial properties that could be profitable. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of nano-phytosomes of Quercetin (NQ) on liver damages of mice infected with Plasmodium berghei. Methods: A total of sixty male BALB/c mice were intra-peritoneally infected by administration of 10 6 P.berghei-infected RBCs. Animals were acclimatized for 7 days and divided into 5 groups including 1) Mice received 0.9% isotonic saline and considered as negative control (NC) and infected mice treated with saline or positive control (PC), 3) treated with 2 mg/kg body weight of Hydroxychloroquine sulfate (HF) for 4 days (HF), 4) treated with 10 mg/kg body weight of NQ for 4 days (NQ) and 5) treated with 10 mg/kg body weight of NQ and 2 mg/kg body weight of HF for 4 days (NQ+HF). Histo-pathological parameters and pro-inflammatory cytokines were also evaluated. Results: Administration of P. berghei could increase scores for histopathological parameters and levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (P<0.0001). Administration of HF and NQ could alleviate adverse effects of P. berghei on histo-pathological parameters (P<0.05). Conclusion: A combination of NQ and HF could show the best response. It means that NQ can be used as adjuvant therapy for treatment of infection induced by Plasmodium berghei.

Quercetin as a Promising Antiprotozoan Phytochemical: Current Knowledge and Future Research Avenues

“…Davoodi et al [ 79 ] observed that Que nanophytosomes (NQ; 10 mg/kg) substantially reduced histopathological damage (e.g., Kupffer cell hyperplasia, hepatic necrosis, hemosiderosis, and periportal inflammation) and serum levels of both IL-1 β and TNF- α in P. berghei -infected mice. Moreover, the best results were achieved when NQ (10 mg/kg) was applied in combination with hydroxychloroquine sulfate (2 mg/kg).…”

“…Flavonoids could also act synergistically with the existing antiparasitic drugs. For example, Que, even at low concentrations, have already been demonstrated to boost therapeutic potential of antimalarial drugs such as chloroquine or artemisinin [ 52 , 55 , 79 ]. Moreover, the synergism between Que and antiparasitic drugs could diminish the development of drug-resistant pathogens in response to these compounds.…”