Phytochemical Analysis and Antimalarial Activity Aqueous Extract of Lecaniodiscus cupanioides Root

Root aqueous extract of Lecaniodiscus cupanioides was evaluated for antimalarial activity and analyzed for its phytochemical constituents. Twenty-four (24) albino mice were infected by intraperitoneal injection of standard inoculum of chloroquine sensitive Plasmodium berghei (NK 65). The animals were randomly divided into 6 groups of 3 mice each. Group 1 served as the control while groups II–IV were orally administered 50, 150, and 250？mg/kg body weights of extract. Groups 5 and 6 received 1.75 and 5？mg/kg of artesunate and chloroquine, respectively. The results of the phytochemical analysis showed the presence of alkaloids (2.37%), saponin (0.336), tannin (0.012 per cent), phenol (0.008 per cent), and anthraquinone (0.002 per cent). There was 100 per cent parasite inhibition in the chloroquine group and 70 per cent in the 50？mg/kg body weight on day 12, respectively. The mean survival time (MST), for the control group was 14 days, artesunate 16 days, and chloroquine 30 days, while the groups that received 50 and 250？mg/kg body weight recorded similar MST of 17 days and the 150？mg/kg body weight group recorded 19 days. The results obtained indicated that the aqueous extract of Lecaniodiscus cupanioides may provide an alternative antimalarial. 1. Introduction Malaria is an enormous health, social, and economic burden for over 40% of the world’s population. It remains one of the most important infectious diseases of mankind, killing 1–3 million people and causing morbidity in more than 500 million people annually [1]. Almost 90 per cent of the deaths from malaria occur in sub-Saharan Africa, where the vulnerable groups are children under 5 years and the pregnant women [2]. The control of malaria is hampered by the rapid selection of parasites resistant to antimalarials. Indeed, there is no single antimalarial in clinical use to which the parasite has not yet developed resistance [3, 4]. Antimalaria drug resistance has become one of the greatest challenges against malaria control. There is widespread multidrug resistance to common antimalarial drugs [1, 5]. Rodent plasmodia such as Plasmodium berghei are commonly used as malaria models in mice and have tremendous impact on the investigations of antimalarial activities of plant extracts. The need to search and develop more effective antimalarial drugs that are inexpensive and readily available to people in the developing countries like Nigeria has necessitated this study. Medicinal plants have been the focus of many anti-infective drugs and alternative sources of antimalarial agents in various parts of the