Antiplasmodial activity of traditional polyherbal remedy from Odisha, India: Their potential for prophylactic use

• Main Authors: Prakash Bangalore Nagendrappa, Jean-François Franetich, Frederick Gay, Audrey Lorthiois, Padma Venkatasubramanian, Dominique Mazier
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2015-12-01
• Series: Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine
• Subjects: Polyherbal remedy; Plasmodium; Malaria prophylaxis; Antiplasmodial activity
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2221169115002142
• ISSN: 2221-1691

Objective: To evaluate the potential prophylactic activity of traditional polyherbal remedy against malaria. Methods: A traditional polyherbal remedy against malaria from Odisha, India was evaluated for its potential prophylactic activity using in vitro hepatic cell lines assay and the murine malaria system Plasmodium yoelii yoelii/Anopheles stephensi. Results: The polyherbal extract inhibited the Plasmodium yoelii hepatic stages in vitro (IC50 0.74 mg/mL), a therapeutic index of 9.54. In mice treated with the aqueous extract (2000 mg/kg/day), peak parasitaemia values were 81% lower in the experimental 2.35% ± 0.14% as compared to controls 12.62% ± 0.52% (P < 0.001), suggesting significant prophylactic activity. Conclusions: The observations provide a proof of concept for a traditional malaria prophylactic remedy used by tribal populations in India.