In vitro and in vivo activities of Haplophyllum myrtifolium against Leishmania tropica

This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro and in vivo leishmanicidal activity of an endemic Turkish plant and compare its efficacy with a reference drug. In addition to the in vitro activities of the ethanol, acidified and alkaloid extracts and furoquinoline alkaloids skimmianine and γ-fagarine, in vivo antileishmanial activitiy of the acidified extract of Haplophyllum myrtifolium Boiss. (Rutaceae) were investigated against Leishmania tropica (L. tropica), a causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. All the extracts and pure compounds showed in vitro inhibitory activity against the promastigotes of. L. tropica. The in vitro 50% inhibitory concentrations of γ-fagarine, acidified extract, ethanol extract, skimmianine and alkaloid extract against promastigotes were determined as 8.7, 9.4, 10.9, 25.7 and 25.8 µg/ml respectively. In vivo results of Haplophyllum myrtifolium acidified extract showed that this plant has a limited effect on decreasing the lesion size of experimental mice infected with Leishmania tropica. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time both the in vitro and in vivo antileishmanial activity of Haplophyllum mrytifolium have been reported in the same research

In vitro and in vivo activities of Haplophyllum myrtifolium against Leishmania tropica

WOS: 000251225500010PubMed ID: 18080680This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro and in vivo leishmanicidal activity of an endemic Turkish plant and compare its efficacy with a reference drug. In addition to the in vitro activities of the ethanol, acidified and alkaloid extracts and furoquinoline alkaloids skimmianine and gamma-fagarine, in vivo antileishmanial activitiy of the acidified extract of Haplophyllum myrtifolium Boiss. (Rutaceae) were investigated against Leishmania tropica (L. tropica), a causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. All the extracts and pure compounds showed in vitro inhibitory activity against the promastigotes of. L. tropica. The in vitro 50% inhibitory concentrations of gamma-fagarine, acidified extract, ethanol extract, skimmianine and alkaloid extract against promastigotes were determined as 8.7, 9.4, 10.9, 25.7 and 25.8 mu g/ml respectively. In vivo results of Haplophyllum myrtifolium acidified extract showed that this plant has a limited effect on decreasing the lesion size of experimental mice infected with Leishmania tropica. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time both the in vitro and in vivo antileishmanial activity of Haplophyllum mrytifolium have been reported in the same research

In vitro efficacy of quercus infectoria Oliv. and achillea millefolium l. extracts against blastocystis spp. isolates [Quercus infectoria oliv. ve achillea millefolium l. ekstrelerinin blastocystis spp. i·zolatlari{dotless}na in vitro etkileri]

Blastocystis is a common intestinal parasite that can inhabit the intestinal tract of humans and many animals. Despite it was firstly described almost 100 years ago; many subjects are still under debate about Blastocystis, including its life-cycle, pathogenic potential and treatment of infected individuals. Historically, local plant species have been used for therapeutic purposes by the local people of Anatolia. Here, hexane and methanol extracts of two local plants, Quercus infectoria (Fagaceae) and Achillea millefolium, which have been used against diarrhea in Anatolia, were examined for their in vitro efficacies against Blastocystis. LC50 and EC50 values of the plant extracts were determined by Brine Shrimp and Graphpad Prism 5® methods, respectively. The results showed that LC50 (500 µg/ml) and EC50 (198.8 µg/ml) concentrations of the methanol extract of A. millefolium were lowest compared to other extracts, its anti-Blastocystis activity was found to be comparable to metronidazole and it showed no cytotoxic activity. These initial results suggest that the methanol extract of A. millefolium may be a novel option for the treatment of Blastocystis infections in humans in future, if confirmed by further, larger-scale studies

Leishmaniasis in Turkey: Determination of Leishmania species by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS)

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is endemic in Southeastern Anatolia, mainly in Sanliurfa and Hatay provinces, and the causative agents are mostly Leishmania tropica and less frequently L. infantum. Here, we report the first MALDI-TOF analyses of Leishmania promastigotes obtained from the cultures of two CL cases from Osmaniye and Hatay provinces who were initially diagnosed by microscopy, culture and identified as L. infantum with Real-Time PCR (RT-PCR). Methods: Samples obtained from the skin lesions of patients were initially stained with Giemsa and cultivated in NNN medium. Examination of the smears and cultures revealed Leishmania amastigotes and promastigotes, respectively. The promastigotes (MHOM/TR/2012/CBU15 and MHOM/TR/2012/MK05) obtained from the cultures of both patients were used for RT-PCR targeting the ITS-1 region in the SSU of rRNA. The reference strains of four Leishmania species (L. infantum, L. donovani, L. tropica and L. major) were initially assessed with MALDI-TOF and their data were added to MALDI-TOF Biotyper Library. Results: Both RT-PCR and MALDI-TOF analyses indicated that the causative agent in both patient samples was L. infantum. Conclusion: Despite disadvantages such as requirement of culture fluid with nothing but promastigotes and high cost, MALDI-TOF analysis may be a fast, sensitive and specific diagnostic tool in especially large-scale research studies, where the cost declines, relatively