Abstract

The emergence of resistant strains of the malaria parasite has necessitated the continued search for other effective, safe and cheap plant-based anti-malarial agents. This study was carried out to evaluate in vivo the anti-plasmodial effect of the extract of a combination of three plants as used in traditional medicine in South-east, Nigeria. Dried and ground roots of the three plants: Anthocleista nobilis, Nauclea latifolia and Napoleona imperialis were extracted in 70% methanol as a combination of equal weight and individually. The extracts were thereafter administered singly and in combination to albino mice of both sexes. From the result, N. latifolia extract exhibited the highest potency, in the curative test, with 78.7±0.7 mean parasite inhibition (p<0.05). This was followed by the compound extract, with mean parasite inhibition of 70.4±0.4, whereas Chloroquine (standard control) caused mean parasite inhibition of 91.6±0.2 (p<0.05). The study also shows that N. imperialis extract has a significant anti-pyretic activity, similar to that of the control (p<0.05). The results suggest that the individual plants have anti-plasmodial effect in varying degrees; however when used in combination, it gives improved symptomatic relief from malaria and extended the mean survival time of the treated mice.

Keywords:

Anti-plasmodial, curative, parasitemia, passaging, Plasmodium berghei, prophylactic, suppressive,

References

Competing interests

The authors have no competing interests.

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Copyright

The authors have no competing interests.