In vitro anthelminthic activities of four medicinal plants against Haemonchus contortus

Abstract

In vitro experiments were conducted to determine the anthelmintic effects of crude aqueous extracts of the leaves of Carissa spinarum and Azadrichta indica, fruits of Phytolacca dodecandra and stem bark of Acacia tortilis on eggs and adults of Haemonchus contortus using egg hatch assay and mortality of adult parasite. Extracts of the leaves of C. spinarum and A. indica inhibited hatching of egg at concentration less than or equal to 1 mg/ml. Low egg hatch inhibition were observed for extracts of A. tortilis (100%) and P. dodecandra (99.4%) at the maximum concentration tested (2 mg/ml). Of the plants tested, extracts of C. spinarum and A. indica showed very good activity against the adult worms of H. contortus, mortality raised to the levels of 96.8 and 93.9%, respectively, at concentration of 4 mg/ml. P. dodecandra and A. tortilis produced mortality of 68.1 and 53.03% of adult H. contortus at 4 mg/ml concentration, respectively. Albendazole killed the parasites in a dose dependant manner and all the worms were dead at a concentration of 0.5 mg/kg within 24 h. The overall findings of the current study indicated that most of the plants have potential anthelmintic effect warranting further in vitro and in vivo evaluation.

Anthelmintic Activity of Plants Especially of Aristolochia Species in Haemonchosis: A Review

“…Misuse of synthetic antiparasitic products has led to the development of Anthelmintic Resistance (AR) (Lans and Brown, 1998;Arunachalam, 2008;Mohammed et al, 2013). In developing countries, production and availability of these drugs are highly variable and often too expensive.…”

“…This is one of the most important parasites causing reduced production in livestock throughout the tropics and in most countries (Walle et al, 1995;Alemu et al, 2014). Over the past five decades, the control of this parasite has been achieved mainly through intensive chemo prophylaxis based on the repeated use of anthelmintic drugs (Mohammed et al, 2013). The emergence of nematode population resistant to one or more of the currently available broad spectrum anthelmintics is a worldwide phenomenon and is particularly severe in small ruminants (Chandrawathani et al, 1999;Leethwick et al, 2001;Ombasa et al, 2012).…”

“…Among different types of helminths, nematodes are the most important as far as their prevalence and adverse effects on animal health and productivity are concerned. They cause retarded growth (Ashraf, 1985;Kochapakdee et al, 1995;Mini, 2012), lowered productivity (Ombasa et al, 2012), mortality (Sykes, 1994;Mohammed et al, 2013) and high economic losses (Irfan, 1984;Iqbal et al, 1993;Alemu et al, 2014), which adversely affect the livelihood of small farmers.…”

“…Adv., 10 (10): 623-645, 2015 Haemonchus is the highly pathogenic nematode parasite of livestock, especially small ruminants capable of causing acute disease and high mortality (Perry et al, 2002;Soulsby, 2006;Ombasa et al, 2012). Haemonchosis is characterized by haemorrhagic anaemia due to the blood sucking activities of the worms in the abomasum (McKenna et al, 1995;Chartier et al, 2001;Soulsby, 2006;Mohammed et al, 2013). This is one of the most important parasites causing reduced production in livestock throughout the tropics and in most countries (Walle et al, 1995;Alemu et al, 2014).…”

“…In developing countries, production and availability of these drugs are highly variable and often too expensive. Moreover, this approach has become a source of public concern in terms of both the use of proprietary drugs in farm production and the risk of chemical residues in food products (Muhammad et al, 2004;Mohammed et al, 2013). Hence, novel approaches to nematode parasite control are needed for small ruminants in the tropics and sub-tropics to counteract the problem of AR (Waller, 1997(Waller, , 1999Ombasa et al, 2012) creating a trend towards organic farming and sustainable animal husbandry (Waller, 2003;Mohammed et al, 2013).…”