@article {1376, title = {Anthelmintic Activity of Hypericum japonicum Thunb.: An in vitro and in silico Studies}, journal = {Pharmacognosy Research}, volume = {17}, year = {2025}, month = {January 2025}, pages = {283-294}, type = {Original Article}, chapter = {283}, abstract = {

Background: Hypericum japonicum Thunb. is a vital medicinal plant in Northeast India, traditionally used by tribal communities to treat helminth infections with leaf extracts. Objectives: The present study investigates the in vitro and in silico studies of anthelmintic activity of H. japonicum. Materials and Methods: The anthelmintic activity was tested on Paramphistomum sp. with a test dose of 5 mg/mL to see the paralysis and death times. Phytocompounds were identified using GC-MS technique. 5 key enzymes-Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP), Acid Phosphatase (ACP), malate-and lactate dehydrogenase, and acetylcholinesterases were assayed using standard protocol. Furthermore, identified compounds were studied for their binding activity with the enzymes. Results: Diethyl ether extract of H. japonicum showed the most potent anthelmintic activity against Paramphistomum sp. in the present study. GC-MS analysis identified 12 compounds in the diethyl ether extract. Of the five enzymes studied, ALP showed highest reduction (42.59\%) and the least was found in ACP (16.21\%) compared to control. Molecular docking observed strongest binding affinity between compound-2 and AchE (-6.73 kcal/mol) followed by ALP, ACP, and MDH enzymes. Conclusion: The findings suggest that Hypericum japonicum could be a potential source of anthelmintic agents, warranting further studies to elucidate its exact mechanism of action.

}, keywords = {Anthelmintic, GC-MS, Hypericum japonicum, Molecular docking, Molecular dynamics}, doi = {10.5530/pres.20252026}, author = {Mritunjoy Kumar Roy and Ananta Swargiary} } @article {1450, title = {Phytochemical Insights and Bioactive Potentials of Alstonia scholaris, a Variety from Mizoram, India: Studies of the Antioxidant and Anti-Infective Properties}, journal = {Pharmacognosy Research}, volume = {17}, year = {2025}, month = {June 2025}, pages = {896-908}, type = {Original Article}, chapter = {896}, abstract = {

Background: A distinct variety of Alstonia scholaris in Mizoram, Northeast India, is a medicinal plant applied in the remedy of various ailments, including diarrhoea, dysentery, gastrointestinal infections, malaria and wounds. Objectives: To evaluate A. scholaris bark for its secondary metabolite components, antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal and anthelmintic properties. Materials and Methods: The chloroform extract of A. scholaris was chemically assessed for its phytocompounds. Antioxidant content was evaluated using phenol, flavonoid and total antioxidant estimations. Antioxidant reaction was determined using DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl)- scavenging and ferric-reducing activities. Antimicrobial susceptibility assays were performed against bacteria and fungi. Anthelmintic activity was examined on a parasitic tapeworm of chicken. Results: Carbohydrates, reducing sugars, phytosterols and saponins were detected as the main bioactive secondary metabolites. The plant extract possesses appreciable amounts of antioxidants, with the total phenolic content of 11.42{\textpm}0.08 mg GAE/g (gallic acid equivalent), the total flavonoid content of 57.87{\textpm}3.53 mg QCE/g (quercetin equivalent) and the total antioxidant capacity of 7.22{\textpm}0.01 mg AAE/g (ascorbic acid equivalent). Free radical-scavenging estimation against DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) indicated a half-maximal Inhibitory Concentration (IC50) value of 28.96 μg/mL. The Ferric-Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) assay showed a linear concentration-dependent antioxidation reaction similar to the standard ascorbic acid. It effectively inhibited Gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus cereus, Enterococcus faecalis and two strains of Staphylococcus aureus), as well as Gram-negative species (Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi). A notable observation was its effectiveness against an antibiotic-resistant S. aureus. The antifungal efficacy against three pathogenic species was in the order Fusarium keratoplasticum\ keratoplasticum\<Aspergillus fumigatus\<Candida albicans. It was highly effective against an intestinal tapeworm, causing structural damages in all vital parts of the parasite body as revealed by histology and scanning electron microscopy. Conclusion: The findings indicate that A. scholaris bark contains important bioactive compounds that are health benefit, antimicrobial and anthelmintic in nature. This is the first report on the broad-spectrum anti-infective potential of A. scholaris and provides an evident-based therapeutic value of the plant.

}, keywords = {Anthelmintic, Antibacterial, Antifungal, Antioxidant, Medicinal plant}, doi = {10.5530/pres.20252145}, author = {Lalngaihmanawmi L and Pawi Bawitlung Lalthanpuii and Lalbiakngheti Tlau and Lucy Lalawmpuii and Lalrosangpuii L and Lalnundanga L and Kholhring Lalchhandama} } @article {1353, title = {Study of in silico and in vitro Anthelmintic Activity of Ethanolic Extract of Artemisia pallens Wall Ex. DC}, journal = {Pharmacognosy Research}, volume = {17}, year = {2025}, month = {January 2025}, pages = {143-153}, type = {Original Article}, chapter = {143}, abstract = {

Background: Helminths, a disease that affects all ages, are being treated with medicinal herbs such as Artemisia pallens Wall. ex DC, a traditional plant material with phytomedicinal properties. Objectives: The study assesses the anthelmintic activity of ethanolic plant material extract against common gastrointestinal helminths and explores its potential as an alternative or complementary treatment for parasitic infections. Materials And Methods: Indian adult earthworm Pheritima posthuma was employed to screen anthelmintic activity. Worms were exposed to different concentration 10 mg/mL, 20 mg/mL, 50 mg/mL, 80 mg/mL and 100 mg/mL concentrations of extract and standard drug, albendazole. Molecular docking for the observation of compounds which had higher activities towards the NADH-Fumarate reductase enzyme. From the database, the compounds with higher docking fitness scores determined using the Auto Dock software version 1.5.6. Further, the ADME/T profiling was done on Swiss ADME Analysis and also on pkCSM software tool. Results: Preliminary phytochemical analysis of EEAP indicated the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, phenols, terpenoids. The anthelmintic potential of A. pallens extract, which showed strong antihelminthic activity in combination with adult Pheritima posthuma that produced paralysis and death at an earlier period as compared to albendazole, while the molecular docking study found good binding scores in the range of -5.15 kcal/mol to -9.6 kcal/mol with the fumarate reductase enzyme. Conclusion: The study confirmed the potential anthelmintic activity of Artemisia pallens. Wall extract, with compounds showing favorable binding scores indicating potential for forthcoming clinical investigations.

}, keywords = {Anthelmintic, Artemisia pallens, AutoDock, Fumarate reductase, Pheretima posthuma}, doi = {10.5530/pres.20251960}, author = {Madhivardhana. P and J. Vidhya Bharathy and S. Ajay Karthikeyan} } @article {417, title = {Evaluation of Bacillus cereus and Bacillus pumilus metabolites for anthelmintic activity}, journal = {Pharmacognosy Research}, volume = {7}, year = {2015}, month = {December 2014}, pages = {81-84}, type = {Original Article}, chapter = {81}, abstract = {

Objective: To assess the anthelmintic acivity of Bacillus cereus and Bacillus pumilus metabolites. Materials and Methods: The successive solvent extractions with petroleum ether, ethyl acetate and methanol. The solvent extracts were tested for anthelmintic activity against Pheretima posthuma at 20 mg/ml concentration. The time of paralysis and time of death of the worms was determined for all the extracts. Albendazole was taken as a standard reference and sterile water as a control. Results: All the sample extracts showed significant anthelmintic activity in paralyzing the worms comparable with that of the standard drug. The time of death exhibited by BP metabolites was close to the time exhibited by standard. Conclusion: The study indicates both bacteria Bacillus cereus and Bacillus pumilus have anthelmintic activity indicating potential metabolites in them.

}, keywords = {Anthelmintic, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus pumilus, Pheretima posthuma.}, doi = {10.4103/0974-8490.147213}, author = {M. L. Vijaya Kumar and B. Thippeswamy and I. L. Kuppust and K. J. Naveenkumar and C. K. Shivakumar} } @article {810, title = {Chromatographic Evaluation and Anthelmintic Activity of Eucalyptus globulus oil}, journal = {Pharmacognosy Research}, volume = {2}, year = {2010}, month = {July 2010}, pages = {125-127}, type = {Original Article}, chapter = {125}, abstract = {

In world Helminthes infections are the most widespread of all the infections in humans. The morbidity due to parasitic diseases has been increasing in our population. The gastrointestinal helminthes become resistant to the currently available anthelmintic drugs. Anthelmintic substances having considerable toxicity to human beings are present in foods derived from livestock, posing a serious threat to human health. Due to this, there is a need to derive new chemical substances from natural sources, for helminthes control. In this study, volatile oil isolated from Eucalyptus globulus Labill was evaluated for its anthelmintic activity on adult Indian earthworms, Pheretima posthuma, which have anatomical and physiological resemblance with the intestinal roundworm parasites of human beings. In concentrations of 0.05, 0.01 and 0.15 ml/ml, respectively, all the oil samples showed potent anthelmintic activity as compared to that of the standard drug albendazole at a concentration of 10 mg/ml.

}, keywords = {Anthelmintic, Eucalyptus globulus, Eucalyptus oil, Pheretima posthumag}, doi = {10.4103/0974-8490.65504}, author = {DJ Taur and VB Kulkarni and RY Patil} }