Warburgia Ugandensis: A Potent in Vivo Phytomedicine Against Plasmodium Knowlesi

Abstract

Resistance to artemisinin-based therapies by Plasmodium falciparum and the entry of P. knowlesi as the fifth human malaria parasite present an urgent need for development of safe, affordable and effective therapeutic alternatives. Warburgia ugandensis, commonly used in herbal medicine, has displayed remarkable antiplasmodial properties. To be accepted as viable alternatives, herbal medicines must be subjected to the modern rigorous testing and validation procedures as used in convention medicines. This study was designed to determine the efficacy and safety of extracts from W. ugandensis. Plasmodium knowlesi-infected baboons were treated with an oral dose of 5000 mgkg-1/birth weight. Changes in parasiteamia, heamatology and biochemistry were recorded over a period of 21 days. Data were managed using GraphPad Prism Version 5.00. ANOVA for calculated means between treated and untreated animals (P-value < 0.0001) were separated by Tukeys’ Multiple Comparison for significance. Low parasiteamia and increased survivorship were observed in treated animals.