J Biomed Res.  2014 Dec;15(4):189-193. 10.12729/jbr.2014.15.4.189.

Anti-Toxoplasmosis Effect of Meliae fructus Ethanol Extract

• Lee HY
• Kim O

• KMID: 2168998
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.12729/jbr.2014.15.4.189

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis is an important cause of foodborne, inflammatory, as well as congenital abnormalities. There is an urgent need for safe and effective therapies to eliminate or treat this cosmopolitan infectious disease. A medicinal herbal plant, Meliae fructus, has been used to soothe the liver and kills worms in Chinese medicine. In this study, Meliae fructus ethanol extract was examined and screened for its anti-T. gondii activity. For anti-T. gondii activity screening, in vitro study of Meliae fructus extract using tachyzoit of T. gondii RH strain-infected HeLa cells was performed. Further, in vivo anti-T. gondii study using a mouse infection model was conducted. Safety of herbal compounds was evaluated in SD rats by treatment with Meliae fructus extract for 28 days. As a result, selectivity of Meliae fructus ethanol extract was 5.85, which was higher than sulfadiazine selectivity (2.06). We also performed an in vivo study to evaluate the anti-T. gondii activity of Meliae fructus extract in a mouse model. The inhibition rate of Meliae fructus extract was as high as that of sulfadiazine. These results demonstrate that Meliae fructus can successfully cure T. gondii infection and could be a promising native herb treatment for prevention of T. gondii infection.

Keyword

Meliae fructus; Toxoplasma gondii; Toxoplasmosis; Anti-toxoplasmosis; Anti-protozoa

MeSH Terms

Animals
Asian Continental Ancestry Group
Communicable Diseases
Congenital Abnormalities
Ethanol*
HeLa Cells
Humans
Liver
Mass Screening
Melia*
Mice
Plants
Plants, Medicinal
Rats
Sulfadiazine
Toxoplasma
Toxoplasmosis
Ethanol
Sulfadiazine