In-vitro Anthelmintic Potential of Leaf Extracts of Amaranthus tricolor Linn.

The present study was designed to investigate the anthelmintic potential of Amaranthus tricolor Linn plant of the Amaranthaceae family using acetone, ethyl acetate and ethanol as solvents. The extracts were screened for phytochemical constituents and evaluated for their vermicidal activity against adult Eisenia fetida earthworms. All the extracts contained phytochemicals, but comparatively. The acetone extract showed the presence of most of the phytochemicals, while ethanol extract contained fewer phytochemicals. Various concentrations (10–30 mg/mL) of each extract were studied in the bioassay, observing the time of paralysis and death of the earthworms. Albendazole was used as reference standard and normal saline as a control group. All extracts exhibited dose-dependent anthelmintic activity in both the parameters (paralysis and death) and were showing more potency than the standard drug. The acetone extract (30 mg/mL) exhibited the most promising activity, causing paralysis within 5 minutes and death of worms within 13 minutes. The result suggests that the acetone extract of A. tricolor Linn plant may be useful as an anthelmintic. In the present study, the traditional use of this leafy vegetable as vermicides was proved scientifically and suggests that A. tricolor Linn plant leaves are valuable source of active compounds possessing anthelmintic activity. The preliminary phytochemical evaluation suggests the strong presence of glycosidic and phenolic substances in acetone extract may be responsible for its exceptional vermicidal activity. A further investigation is sought to isolate and develop novel anthelmintic drug present in the plant. The data were verified as statistically significant using one-way ANOVA at 5 % significance level (p < 0.05, n = 3).