Variation in chemical composition and antimalarial activities of two samples of Terminalia albida collected from separate sites in Guinea

Abstract

Background The disparity of harvesting locations can influence the chemical composition of a plant species, which could affect its quality and bioactivity. Terminalia albida is widely used in traditional Guinean medicine whose activity against malaria has been validated in vitro and in murine models. The present work investigated the antimalarial properties and chemical composition of two samples of T. albida collected from different locations in Guinea. Method T. albida samples were collected in different locations in Guinea, in Dubréka prefecture (West maritime Guinea) and in Kankan prefecture (eastern Guinea). The identity of the samples was confirmed by molecular analysis. In vitro antiplasmodial activity of the two extracts was determined against the chloroquine resistant strain PfK1. In vivo, extracts (100 mg/kg) were tested in two experimental murine models, respectively infected with P. chabaudi chabaudi and P. berghei ANKA. The chemical composition of the two samples was assessed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry. Results In vitro, the Dubréka sample (TaD) was more active with an IC50 of 1.5 μg/mL versus 8.5 μg/mL for the extract from Kankan (TaK). In vivo, the antiparasitic effect of TaD was substantial with 56% of parasite inhibition at Day 10 post-infection in P. chabaudi infection and 61% at Day 8 in P. berghei model, compared to 14 and 19% inhibition respectively for the treatment with TaK. In addition, treatment with TaD further improved the survival of P. berghei infected-mice by 50% at Day 20, while the mortality rate of mice treated with Tak was similar to the untreated group. The LC/MS analysis of the two extracts identified 38 compounds, 15 of which were common to both samples while 9 and 14 other compounds were unique to TaD and TaK respectively. Conclusion This study highlights the variability in the chemical composition of the species T. albida when collected in different geographical locations. These chemical disparities were associated with variable antimalarial effects. From a public health perspective, these results underline the importance of defining chemical fingerprints related to botanical species identification and to biological activity, for the plants most commonly used in traditional medicine.

Antimalarial Activity of Aqueous Extracts of Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus L.) and Benzyl Isothiocyanate

“…Both BITC and the reference drug CQ displayed sigmoidal dose-response curves compatible with biological activity (Figure 1). The IC50 values and the resistance index calculated for CQ were consistent with previous results in similar laboratory conditions [32][33][34], hence validating the assay conditions. The resistance index provides a quantitative measure of activity against a resistant strain in comparison to a susceptible strain (RI=IC50 Dd2/IC50 3D7-GFP) [35,36].…”

Antimalarial Activity of Aqueous Extracts of Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus L.) and Benzyl Isothiocyanate

“…Both BITC and the reference drug CQ displayed sigmoidal dose-response curves compatible with biological activity (Figure 1). The IC50 values and the resistance index calculated for CQ were consistent with previous results in similar laboratory conditions [38][39][40], hence validating the assay conditions. The resistance index provides a quantitative measure of activity against a resistant strain in comparison to a susceptible strain (RI = IC50 Dd2/IC50 3D7 − GFP) [41,42].…”

The effect of Eucalyptus camaldulensis leaf extracts from different environmental harvesting locations on Plasmodium chabaudi-induced malaria outcome

“…The chemical composition of a plant species can be influenced by the location of harvesting, which can affect its quality and bioactivity (Camara et al, 2021). Additionally, Tian et al (2016) have shown substantial variation in phytochemical components and the bioactivity of same species from various origins.…”

“…Metabolite content is heavily influenced by genetic and environmental factors, though the extent of variation caused by these factors varies depending on the type of metabolite. Medicinal plants produce a large number of metabolites with diverse structures, all of which play important roles in plant growth, development, and environmental response (Camara et al, 2021). The study by Zhang et al (2017) have shown the connection between the effectiveness, chemical components, and distribution of the antimalarial medicinal plant, Artemisia annua L. collected from several geographic areas.…”