Screening of the antimalarial activity of plants of the Cucurbitaceae family

Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz

Cláudia Zuany Amorim¹  Arthur Diaz Marques¹  Renato Sergio Balão Cordeiro¹ 

[1] ,Instituto Oswaldo Cruz Departamento de Fisiologia e Farmacodinâmica Rio de Janeiro,Brasil

关键词: antimalarials;    drug therapy;    natural products;    plant extracts;    drug screening;    Plasmodium berghei;    curcubita maxima;    Momordica charantia;    Cucurbitaceae;   

DOI  :  10.1590/S0074-02761991000600040

来源: SciELO

【 摘 要 】

Crude ethanolic extracts (CEEs) from two species of Cucurbitaceae, Cucurbita maxima and Momordica charantia (commonly called "abóbora moranga" and melão de São Caetano", respectively) were assayed for antimalarial activity by the 4-d suppressive test. The CEE of dry C. maxima seeds showed strong antimalarial activity following oral administration (259 and 500 mg/kg), reducing by 50% the levels of parasistemia in Plasmodium berghey-infected mice. Treatment of normal animals with 500 mg/Kg of the extract three days before intravenous injection of P. berghei caused a significant 30% reduction in parasitemic levels. No effect was observed when the animals were treated with the CEE only on the day of inoculation. Oral administration of the CEE of dry M. charantia leaves adminstered orally was ineffective up to 500 mg/Kg in lowering the parasitemic levels of malarious mice.

【 授权许可】

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