Mohammad Islamuddin, Garima Chouhan, Muzamil Y. Want, Maujiram Tyagi, Malik Z. Abdin, Dinkar Sahal, Farhat Afrin
Abstract
Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), the second-most dreaded parasitic disease after malaria, is currently endemic in 88 countries. Dramatic increases in the rates of infection, drug resistance, and non-availability of safe vaccines have highlighted the need for identification of novel and inexpensive anti-leishmanial agents from natural sources. In this study, we showed the leishmanicidal effect of essential oil from Artemisia annua leaves (AALEO) against Leishmania donovani in vitro and in vivo. AALEO was extracted by hydrodistillation and characterized by GC-MS, the most abundant compounds were found to be camphor (52.06 %) followed by β-caryophyllene (10.95 %). AALEO exhibited significant leishmanicidal activity against L. donovani, with 50 % inhibitory concentration of 14.63 ± 1.49 μg ml(-1) and 7.3 ± 1.85 μg ml(-1), respectively, against the promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes. The effect was mediated through programmed cell death as confirmed by externalization of phosphatidylserine, DNA nicking by TdT-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling assay, dyskinetoplastidy, cell cycle arrest at sub-G0-G1 phase, loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and reactive oxygen species generation in promastigotes and nitric oxide generation in ex vivo model. AALEO presented no cytotoxic effects against mammalian macrophages even at 200 μg ml(-1). Intra-peritoneal administration of AALEO (200 mg/ kg.b.w.) to infected BALB/c mice reduced the parasite burden by almost 90% in the liver and spleen with significant reduction in weight. There was no hepato- or nephro-toxicity as demonstrated by normal levels of serum enzymes. The promising antileishmanial activity shown by camphor-rich AALEO may provide a new lead in the treatment of VL.
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science
13
10%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
11
9%
Immunology and Microbiology
8
6%
Chemistry
7
5%
Other
25
19%
Unknown
39
30%
Attention Score in Context
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 5. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 26 November 2018.
All research outputs
#6,269,725
of 22,771,140 outputs
Outputs from Frontiers in Microbiology
#6,200
of 24,680 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#87,345
of 361,642 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Frontiers in Microbiology
#61
of 206 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 22,771,140 research outputs across all sources so far. This one has received more attention than most of these and is in the 72nd percentile.
So far Altmetric has tracked 24,680 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a little more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 6.3. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 74% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 361,642 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done well, scoring higher than 75% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 206 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 70% of its contemporaries.
