In vitro determination of the anti-helminthic properties of Anthocleista djalonensis

Abstract

Medicinal plants have been identified and used throughout human history for its different activities. This study was carried out to screen the aqueous, butanol, ethyl acetate, methanol and n-hexane fractions of the leaves of Anthocleista djalonensis for anti-helminthic activity across various concentrations (10–50 mg/ml) of the crude extract and 10 mg/ml of the different fractions. Albendazole (10 mg/ml) was used as reference standard drug while 20% Tween 80 was used as control. Determination of paralysis time and death times of the worms were recorded. In vitro treatment of the parasite with the highest dose of crude extract (50 mg/ml) resulted in paralysis and death at 20 min and 110 min respectively. Butanol showed greatest anti-helminthic activity even higher than that of the reference drug with paralysis and death times of 13 min and 51 min respectively. The order of sensitivity of the fractions to the worms was butanol > n-hexane > ethyl acetate > aqueous. The overall finding of this study demonstrates that the leaves possess anthelminthic compounds and should be further evaluated as a remedy to various disease conditions associated with worm infestation.