Журнал бактериологии и паразитологии

Абстрактный

In vitro effects of some Thai anthelmintic plants on mortality and integumentary surface changes of Stellantchasmus falcatus

Kittisak Buddhachat, Kittichai Chantima, Siriwadee Chomdey and Chalobol Wongsawad

Several Thai herbs have been used for the treatment of parasitic infections according to the Thai Pharmacopoeia. To scientifically test their anthelmintic activity, Stellantchasmus falcatus was used as a model to test their activity. The activity of aqueous extracts of papaya (Carica papaya Linn.) seeds and bitter melon (Mormordica charantia Linn.) fruits was studied using mortality and tegument surface change on S. falcatus. The worms were incubated in 12.5%, 50% and 100% (0.47, 1.88 and 3.15 mg/ml for papaya seed extract respectively, 7.5, 30 and 60 mg/ml for bitter melon extract respectively) aqueous herbal extracts and in Tyrode's solution as a control. As a result, the aqueous extract of papaya seeds generally had greater anthelmintic activity than the bitter melon fruit extract, since a much lower concentration of papaya seed extract was required to kill all the worms than bitter melon fruit extract. In addition, scanning electron microscopy was used to observe the change in the shell surface of the dead worm treated with these extracts. Consequently, the worms treated with the aqueous extract of papaya seeds showed loss of spines, especially around the oral sucker and posterior region; whereas, the worms exposed to both papaya seeds and bitter melon fruit extracts showed bending at the edge of the spines, blisters and ruptures on the body surface. The aqueous extracts of papaya seeds and bitter melon fruit have anthelmintic activity, which can be used in the treatment of parasitic infection.