Antitrypanosomal Effects of Zanthoxylum zanthoxyloides (Lam.) Zepern. & Timler Extracts on African Trypanosomes
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Date
2019-07-14
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Abstract
African trypanosomiasis is a disease caused by the parasitic protozoa of the Trypanosoma genus. Despite several efforts at
chemotherapeutic interventions, the disease poses serious health and economic concerns to humans and livestock of many sub-
Saharan African countries. Zanthoxylum zanthoxyloides (Lam.) Zepern. & Timler (Z. zanthoxyloides LZT) is a plant species
of important phytochemical and pharmacological relevance in the subtropical zones of the African continent. However, the
mechanisms of its antitrypanosomal effects inAfrican trypanosomes remain to be elucidated.The aim of the study was to determine
the in vitro effects and mechanisms of action of Z. zanthoxyloides LZT (root) fractions against Trypanosoma brucei. T. brucei
(GUTat 3.1 strain), L. donovani (D10 strain), P. falciparum (3D 7 strain), Jurkat cells, and Chang liver cells were cultivated in vitro
to the log phase in their respective media at 37∘C. Crude extracts and fractions were prepared from air-dried pulverized plant
material of Z. zanthoxyloides LZT (root) using the modified Kupchan method of solvent partitioning. Half-maximal inhibitory
concentrations (IC50) were determined through the alamar blue cell viability assay. Effects of fractions on cell death and cell
cycle of T. brucei were determined using flow cytometry. Fluorescence microscopy was used to investigate the effects of fractions
on the morphology and distribution of T. brucei. Antitrypanosomal compounds of fractions were characterized using highperformance
liquid chromatography (HPLC) and attenuated total reflectance infrared (ATR-IR) spectroscopy. Methanol, butanol,
and dichloromethane fractions were selectively active against T. brucei with respective IC50 values of 3.89, 4.02, and 5.70 ��g/ml.
Moreover, methanol, butanol, and dichloromethane fractions significantly induced apoptosis-like cell death with remarkable
alteration in the cell cycle of T. brucei. Furthermore, dichloromethane and methanol fractions altered the morphology, induced
aggregation, and altered the ratio of nuclei to kinetoplasts in the parasite. The HPLC chromatograms and ATR-IR spectra of the
active fractions suggested the presence of aromatic hydrocarbons with hydroxyl, carbonyl, amine, or amide functional groups.The
results suggest that Z. zanthoxyloides LZT have potential chemotherapeutic effects on African trypanosomes with implications for
novel therapeutic interventions in African trypanosomiasis.
Description
Research Article
Keywords
African trypanosomiasis, Trypanosoma genus, chemotherapeutic interventions, Zanthoxylum zanthoxyloides