In VitroandIn VivoAntimalarial Evaluations of Myrtle Extract, a Plant Traditionally Used for Treatment of Parasitic Disorders

Abstract

Based on the collected ethnobotanical data from the Traditional Medicine and Materia Medica Research Center (TMRC), Iran,Myrtus communisL. (myrtle) was selected for the assessment ofin vitroandin vivoantimalarial and cytotoxic activities. Methanolic extract of myrtle was prepared from the aerial parts and assessed for antiplasmodial activity, using the parasite lactate dehydrogenase (pLDH) assay against chloroquine-resistant (K1) and chloroquine-sensitive (3D7) strains ofPlasmodium falciparum. The 4-day suppressive test was employed to determine the parasitemia suppression of the myrtle extract againstP. berghei  in vivo. The IC50values of myrtle extract were 35.44 µg/ml against K1 and 0.87 µg/ml against 3D7. Myrtle extract showed a significant suppression of parasitaemia (84.8 ± 1.1% at 10 mg/kg/day) in mice infected withP. bergheiafter 4 days of treatment. Cytotoxic activity was carried out against mammalian cell lines using methyl thiazol tetrazolium (MTT) assay. No cytotoxic effect on mammalian cell lines up to 100 µg/mL was shown. The results support the traditional use of myrtle in malaria. Phytochemical investigation and understanding the mechanism of action would be in our upcoming project.