INTRODUCTION:

Medicinal properties of the plants are due to the phytochemicals present in them. Their therapeutic application can be established in light of modern medicine. The plant Kingdom still holds many species of plants containing active constituents of medicinal value which yet to be screened for their pharmacological value in addition to the already exploited plants. New plant drugs usually find their way to modern medicine by use of modern isolation techniques and pharmacological screening methods. Helminths are recognized as a major problem to livestock production throughout tropics and chemical control of helminths coupled with improved management has been the important worm control strategy throughout the world¹. Many humans harbour helmint of one species or another. In some cases these infections result mainly in discomfort and do not cause substantial ill health. In many countries, particularly those in tropical and subtropical regions, almost all the indigenous population is infected with hookworms or other helminthes. The problem of the treatment of helminthiasis is, therefore ,of very great practical importance. In addition, worm infections are also a major cause for concern in veterinary medicine, affecting both domestic pets and farm animals².

Samadera indica (Simaroubaceae) is distributed throughout India as under growth in forests and along backwaters of South India. Samadera indica is a small tree up to 11 m in height with stout branches and pale yellow bark and leaves are large, up to 25 cm long and 9 cm broad, elliptic-oblong, shortly acuminate, entire, shiningand base rounded. Flowers are pinkish yellow in few or many flowered axillary umbels, peduncles longer than the leaves, pedicels red. Fruits are large, flat, pear shaped, much compressed, smooth reticulate³.The bark and wood is stomachic, emmenagogue, febrifuge and tonic, and are useful in vitiated conditions of vata, dyspepsia, flatulence, colic, dysmenorrhoea and general debility. The leaves used in puritis, leprosy, scabies, pruritus, skin diseases, constipation and bilious fever. The seed oil is astringent, acrid, thermogenic, depurative, emetic, purgative and febrifuge⁴.Invitro antiplasmodial activity was reported in roots and leaves of samadera indica ⁵. SamaderinB and C isolated from the seed kernels of Samdera indica were shown to exhibit antifeedant activity against Spodoptera litura⁶.

The present study was aimed to evaluate the invitro anthelmintic activity of crude extract of Samadera indica against Raillietina spiralis, Ascaridia galli.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Plant Material:

Fresh leaves of Samadera indica was collected from TBGRI, Thiruvananthapuram during the month of March 2007. The plant was identified by Mrs. Amina Ali, Associate Professor and Head, Department of Pharmacognosy, Govt. Medical College, Calicut, Kerala, India. Voucher specimen (AA-33/10) is preserved in institute herbarium department for future reference.

Preparation of Extract:

Ethyl alcohol extract The shade dried powdered fruits (500g) were exhaustively extracted with 95% ethanol using a soxhlet apparatus. The extract was concentrated in vaccuo to a syrupy consistency. The percentage yield of extract was found to be 3.2 %.

Aqueous extract:

The dried powders (24#) 100gm of the was taken in a 2000ml conical flask with 500ml of distilled water to which 10ml chloroform were added as a preservative. It was extracted up to 7 days with daily 2 hours stirring with the mechanical stirrer. After 7 days the extract was filtered through the muslin cloth and the marc was pressed and its filtrate dried in hot air oven at 45⁰C to a semisolid mass. It was stored in airtight container in a refrigerator below 10⁰C. The percentage yield of extract was found to be 4.1 %.

Animals:

The anthelmintic assay was carried out as per the method of Ajaiyeoba et al ⁷. Tape worm (Raillietina spiralis) and round worm (Ascaridia galli) were used as suitable models for screening of anthelmintic activity. Tape worm and round worms were obtained from intestine of freshly slaughtered fowls. These infested intestines of fowls were collected from the local slaughter house washed with normal saline solution to remove all faecal matter. Intestines were then dissected and worms were collected and kept in normal saline solution. 50 ml of formulation containing three different concentrations, each of alcoholic and aqueous extracts (10, 25 and 50 mg/ml in distillilled water) were prepared and six worms (same type ) were placed in it. This was done for both Raillietina spiralis and Ascaridia galli. Time for paralysis was noted when no movement of sort could be observed except when the worms were shaken vigorously. Time for death of worm was recorded after ascertaining that worms neither moved when shaken vigorously nor when dipped in warm water (50⁰c).Test samples of the extract were prepared at concentrations 10, 25,50 mg/ml in distilled water and six worms ( same type) were placed in each petridish. Piperazine citrate (10 mg/ml) was used as a reference standard and distilled water as control.

RESULT AND DISCUSSION:

The phytochemical screening subjected to detect the presence of some secondary plant metabolites following standard procedure. Ethyl alcohol extract revealed the presence of steroids, alkaloids, flavanoids, tannins and poly phenols. Aqueous extract contains alkaloids, flavanoids, tannins and poly phenols. The leaves extracts of samadera indica displayed significant anthelmintic activity (p<0.05) in dose dependent manner as giving shortest time of paralysis (P) and death (D) with 50 mg /ml concentration, for all two types of worms as shown in Table 1.. Evaluation of anthelmintic activity was compared with reference standard piperazine citrate .The anthelmintic activity of piperazine citrate produced by increasing chloride conductance of worm muscle membrane produces hyperpolarization and reduced excitability that leads to muscle relaxation and flaccid paralysis.

Ethyl alcohol extract of Samadera indica shows the paralysis as well as death of worm in a less time as compared to piperazine citrate especially at higher concentration (50 mg / ml). While aqueous extract also shows significant activities. The ethyl alcohol and aqueous extract reveals the presence of flavanoids and polyphenolic compounds as one of the phytochemical constituents. Polyphenolic compounds show anthelmintic activity. Some of the synthetic polyanthelmintics, e g: niclosamide, oxclosanide are shown to interfere with energy generation in helmint parasites by a coupling oxidative phosphorylation⁸ . It is possible that phenolic compound in the extract of Samadera indica produce similar effect which needs to be investigated further. Another possible anthelmintic effects of tannins is they can bind to free protein in the gastrointestinal tract of host animal or glycoprotein on the cuticle of the parasite and cause death^9,10.

CONCLUSION:

This study has revealed the presence of many secondary metabolites (phytocostituents) in the plant of Samadera indica.It has further confirmed that the plant extract could be used against helmints. This result lend the credence to the folkloric use of this plant in treatment against worms and show that Samadera indica could be exploited as a new potent anthelmintic .

Table No: 01. Anthelmintic activity of extracts of Samadera Indica leaves.

Extract of Groups	Concentration mg/ml	*Raillietina spiralis*		*Ascardia Galli*
Extract of Groups	Concentration mg/ml	P	D	P	D
EA	10	27±1.24	63±1.05	20±1.52	56±1.42
	25	19±0.66	43±0.72	15±0.55	44±0.96
	50	11±0.70	31±0.42	10±1.22	32±0.46
AE	10	34±1.38	53±1.07	21±1.08	60±0.98
	25	22±0.76	40±0.72	18±0.52	46±0.96
	50	13±0.80	28±0.58	11±0.44	40±0.52
PC	10	10±1.04	34±0.68	9±1.34	36±0.98
Control	-	-	-	-	-

Where EA: Ethyl Alcohol extract, AE: Aqueous extract, PC: Piperazine citrate,

P: Time taken for Paralysis (min), D: Time taken for Death of worms (min).

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

The author’s thankful to Mrs. Amina Ali, Associate Professor and Head, Department of Pharmacognosy, Govt. Medical College, Calicut, Kerala, India, for authentication of the plant specimen.

REFERENCES:

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Received on 13.07.2011 Modified on 20.07.2011

Research J. Pharm. and Tech. 4(10): Oct. 2011; Page 1593-1595