Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean area
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Sardinia is a Mediterranean area endemic for malaria up to the last century. During a screening study to evaluate the anti-plasmodial activity of some aromatic plants traditionally used in Sardinia, <it>Myrtus communis</it&g...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2012-07-01
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| Series: | Malaria Journal |
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| Online Access: | http://www.malariajournal.com/content/11/1/219 |
| _version_ | 1828813875788644352 |
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| author | Dell’Agli Mario Sanna Cinzia Rubiolo Patrizia Basilico Nicoletta Colombo Elisa Scaltrito Maria M Ndiath Mamadou Maccarone Luca Taramelli Donatella Bicchi Carlo Ballero Mauro Bosisio Enrica |
| author_facet | Dell’Agli Mario Sanna Cinzia Rubiolo Patrizia Basilico Nicoletta Colombo Elisa Scaltrito Maria M Ndiath Mamadou Maccarone Luca Taramelli Donatella Bicchi Carlo Ballero Mauro Bosisio Enrica |
| author_sort | Dell’Agli Mario |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Sardinia is a Mediterranean area endemic for malaria up to the last century. During a screening study to evaluate the anti-plasmodial activity of some aromatic plants traditionally used in Sardinia, <it>Myrtus communis</it> (myrtle, Myrtaceae), <it>Satureja thymbra</it> (savory, Lamiaceae), and <it>Thymus herba-barona</it> (caraway thyme, Lamiaceae) were collected in three vegetative periods: before, during and after flowering.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The essential oils were obtained by steam distillation, fractionated by silica gel column chromatography and analysed by GC-FID-MS. Total oil and three main fractions were tested on D10 and W2 strains of <it>Plasmodium falciparum in vitro</it>. Larvicidal and adulticidal activities were tested on <it>Anopheles gambiae</it> susceptible strains.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The essential oil of savory, rich in thymol, was the most effective against <it>P. falciparum</it> with an inhibitory activity independent from the time of collection (IC<sub>50</sub> 17–26 μg/ml on D10 and 9–11 μg/ml on W2). Upon fractionation, fraction 1 was enriched in mono-sesquiterpenoid hydrocarbons; fraction 2 in thymol (73-83%); and fraction 3 contained thymol, carvacrol and terpinen-4-ol, with a different composition depending on the time of collection. Thymol-enriched fractions were the most active on both strains (IC<sub>50</sub> 20–22 μg/ml on D10 and 8–10 μg/ml on W2) and thymol was confirmed as mainly responsible for this activity (IC<sub>50</sub> 19.7± 3.0 and 10.6 ± 2.0 μg/ml on D10 and W2, respectively). The essential oil of <it>S. thymbra</it> L. showed also larvicidal and adulticidal activities. The larvicidal activity, expressed as LC<sub>50</sub>, was 0.15 ± 0.002; 0.21 ± 0.13; and 0.15 ± 0.09 μg/ml (mean ± sd) depending on the time of collection: before, during and after flowering, respectively.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study provides evidence for the use of essential oils for treating malaria and fighting the vector at both the larval and adult stages. These findings open the possibility for further investigation aimed at the isolation of natural products with anti-parasitic properties.</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T10:10:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-fd8febdd9d754684830fa0e5b0d619b9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1475-2875 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T10:10:48Z |
| publishDate | 2012-07-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Malaria Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-fd8febdd9d754684830fa0e5b0d619b92022-12-22T00:27:48ZengBMCMalaria Journal1475-28752012-07-0111121910.1186/1475-2875-11-219Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean areaDell’Agli MarioSanna CinziaRubiolo PatriziaBasilico NicolettaColombo ElisaScaltrito Maria MNdiath MamadouMaccarone LucaTaramelli DonatellaBicchi CarloBallero MauroBosisio Enrica<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Sardinia is a Mediterranean area endemic for malaria up to the last century. During a screening study to evaluate the anti-plasmodial activity of some aromatic plants traditionally used in Sardinia, <it>Myrtus communis</it> (myrtle, Myrtaceae), <it>Satureja thymbra</it> (savory, Lamiaceae), and <it>Thymus herba-barona</it> (caraway thyme, Lamiaceae) were collected in three vegetative periods: before, during and after flowering.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The essential oils were obtained by steam distillation, fractionated by silica gel column chromatography and analysed by GC-FID-MS. Total oil and three main fractions were tested on D10 and W2 strains of <it>Plasmodium falciparum in vitro</it>. Larvicidal and adulticidal activities were tested on <it>Anopheles gambiae</it> susceptible strains.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The essential oil of savory, rich in thymol, was the most effective against <it>P. falciparum</it> with an inhibitory activity independent from the time of collection (IC<sub>50</sub> 17–26 μg/ml on D10 and 9–11 μg/ml on W2). Upon fractionation, fraction 1 was enriched in mono-sesquiterpenoid hydrocarbons; fraction 2 in thymol (73-83%); and fraction 3 contained thymol, carvacrol and terpinen-4-ol, with a different composition depending on the time of collection. Thymol-enriched fractions were the most active on both strains (IC<sub>50</sub> 20–22 μg/ml on D10 and 8–10 μg/ml on W2) and thymol was confirmed as mainly responsible for this activity (IC<sub>50</sub> 19.7± 3.0 and 10.6 ± 2.0 μg/ml on D10 and W2, respectively). The essential oil of <it>S. thymbra</it> L. showed also larvicidal and adulticidal activities. The larvicidal activity, expressed as LC<sub>50</sub>, was 0.15 ± 0.002; 0.21 ± 0.13; and 0.15 ± 0.09 μg/ml (mean ± sd) depending on the time of collection: before, during and after flowering, respectively.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study provides evidence for the use of essential oils for treating malaria and fighting the vector at both the larval and adult stages. These findings open the possibility for further investigation aimed at the isolation of natural products with anti-parasitic properties.</p>http://www.malariajournal.com/content/11/1/219Essential oilInsecticidal activity<it>Plasmodium falciparum</it><it>Satureja thymbra</it><it>Myrtus communis</it><it>Thymus herba-barona</it>Thymol<it>Anopheles gambiae</it> |
| spellingShingle | Dell’Agli Mario Sanna Cinzia Rubiolo Patrizia Basilico Nicoletta Colombo Elisa Scaltrito Maria M Ndiath Mamadou Maccarone Luca Taramelli Donatella Bicchi Carlo Ballero Mauro Bosisio Enrica Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean area Malaria Journal Essential oil Insecticidal activity <it>Plasmodium falciparum</it> <it>Satureja thymbra</it> <it>Myrtus communis</it> <it>Thymus herba-barona</it> Thymol <it>Anopheles gambiae</it> |
| title | Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean area |
| title_full | Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean area |
| title_fullStr | Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean area |
| title_full_unstemmed | Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean area |
| title_short | Anti-plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the Mediterranean area |
| title_sort | anti plasmodial and insecticidal activities of the essential oils of aromatic plants growing in the mediterranean area |
| topic | Essential oil Insecticidal activity <it>Plasmodium falciparum</it> <it>Satureja thymbra</it> <it>Myrtus communis</it> <it>Thymus herba-barona</it> Thymol <it>Anopheles gambiae</it> |
| url | http://www.malariajournal.com/content/11/1/219 |
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