Ovicidal effect of the methanolic extract of ginger (Zingiber officinale) on Fasciola hepatica eggs: an in vitro study.

Abstract

Fasciolosis is of considerable economic and public health importance worldwide. Little information is available on the ovicidal effects of anthelminthic drugs. The use of ovicidal anthelmintics can be effective in disease control. In this study, the effectiveness of the methanolic extract of ginger (Zingiber officinale) on the eggs of Fasciola hepatica is investigated. Fasciola hepatica eggs were obtained from the gall bladders of naturally infected sheep and kept at 4°C until use. The eggs were exposed to varying concentrations of ginger extract (1, 5, 10, 25 and 50mg/mL) for 24, 48 and 72h. To investigate the effect of the ginger extracts on the miracidial formation, the treated eggs were incubated at 28°C for 14days. The results indicated that F. hepatica eggs are susceptible to the methanolic extract of Z. officinale. The ovicidal effect of ginger extract at a concentration of 1mg/mL with 24, 48 and 72h treatment time was 46.08, 51.53 and 69.09% respectively (compared with 22.70% for control group). The ovicidal effect of ginger extract at a concentration of 5mg/mL after 24h was 98.84%. One hundred percent ovicidal efficacy was obtained through application of ginger extract at concentrations of 5 and 10mg/mL with a 48 and 24h treatment time respectively. The in vitro ovicidal effect of the methanolic extract of Z. officinale was satisfactory in this study, however, in vivo efficacy of this extract, remains for further investigation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the ovicidal effect of Z. officinale against F. hepatica eggs.