Antimalarial Efficacy of Bergenia ciliata (Saxifragaceae) Leaf Extract In vitro against Plasmodium falciparum and In vivo against Plasmodium berghei

Aim: The traditional medicinal plant Bergenia ciliata was used to evaluate its antiplasmodial activity against Plasmodium falciparum in vitro and preventive and curative activity against Plasmodium berghei in vivo. The safety of the ethanolic leaf extract of Bergenia ciliata (ELEBC) to the liver and kidney functions of the rodent host was also tested. Place and Duration of the Study: Parasitology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India, between October 2014 to November 2015. Methodology: The in vitro antiplasmodial activity of the ELEBC against both chloroquine-resistant (RKL-9) and sensitive (MRC-2) strains of P. falciparum was assessed by using the WHO method. The cytotoxicity of the extract against human cancer and normal cell lines was tested by MTT Original Research Article Walter and Bagai; BMRJ, 17(6): 1-10, 2016; Article no.BMRJ.29262 2 assay. The in vivo repository and curative efficacy of the extract against P. berghei were tested using the Peter’s method and modified method of Ryley and Peters respectively. The biochemical assays were performed as per standard methods. Results: ELEBC exhibited considerable inhibitory activity against both RKL-9 and MRC-2 strains of P. falciparum with IC50 of 6.4 μg/ml and <5 μg/ml respectively. The extract exhibited no toxicity against both cancer and normal cell lines with CC50 >1000 μg/ml and selectivity index (SI) >10. Maximum chemosuppression of 74.45% and 91.96% was observed on day 7 at a concentration of 1000 mg/kg (repository activity) and 250 mg/kg (curative activity), respectively. 83.33% survival of mice was observed in G6 (750 mg/kg) while in all other ELEBC treated groups 50% survival was recorded on day 28 of study in the curative test. Hepatic function (SGOT, SGPT, ALP and bilirubin) and renal function biomarkers (creatinine and urea) in serum were observed to be significantly (P< 0.0005) lower as compared to the infected control (G2). Conclusions: ELEBC possesses considerable antimalarial activity against both sensitive and resistant strains of P. falciparum. It also exhibits significant efficacy as a preventive and curative remedy against the disease without any side effects on hepatic and renal functions of the rodent host.