A study on two ethnomedicinal plants and their therapeutic usage for the control of paramphistomosis in vitro

Paramphistomosis is a neglected parasitic disease of livestock caused by the Paramphistomum sp. The prevalence of the trematode is worldwide most abundantly in livestock farming regions such as Australia, Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Russia. The infection causes a huge loss in productivity in the livestock industry. There is no proper treatment for this disease. Herbal medicines are age-old practices in different ethnic groups in treating helminth infections with less or no side effects. As a treatment regimen for paramphistomosis adult Paramphistomum collected from the local slaughter house were exposed to different concentrations of crude ethanolic leaf extracts of Adhatoda vasica and Ricinus communis. The efficacy of plants was assessed on the basis of the motility of the flukes. The plant extracts show a reduction in parasite viability in a dose-dependent manner. The parasite released numerous eggs may be for reducing the cost of living in terms of oxygen demand and nutrient availability as much as possible. The paralyzing and killing effect of leaf extract of R.communis was higher than the A.vasica leaf extract though both plant extracts possess anthelmintic effects. Therefore these plants show potential for treating helminth infection and can be used as a herbal medicine in combating paramphistomosis.