In Vitro Assessment of Antiplasmodial and Antitrypanosomal Activities of Chloroform, Ethyl Acetate and Ethanol Leaf Extracts of Oedera genistifolia

The high resistance evolution of protozoans to the existing antiparasitic drugs has necessitated the quest for novel and effective drugs against plasmodium and trypanosome parasites. As a result, this study aimed to assess the antiplasmodial and antitrypanosomal potentials of chloroform, ethyl acetate and ethanol leaf extracts of Oedera genistifolia. Standard biochemical procedures were explored for the plant extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GCMS) was used to identify the bioactive compounds in the crude extracts. The cytotoxic effects of the crude extracts were assessed against human cervix adenocarcinoma (HeLa cells) and their antiparasitic activities were investigated against Plasmodium falciparum strain 3D7 and Trypanosoma brucei brucei. GCMS analyses of the crude extracts revealed the bioactive compounds that could be responsible for the biological activities. The extracts had no cytotoxic effect on HeLa cells and demonstrated good antiplasmodial activity (chloroform extract: IC₅₀ = 11.6 µg∙mL⁻¹, ethyl acetate extract: IC₅₀ = 3.3 µg∙mL⁻¹ and ethanol extract: IC₅₀ = 3.7 µg∙mL⁻¹). Likewise, they showed excellent antitrypanosomal activity with IC₅₀ = 0.5 µg∙mL⁻¹ for chloroform and ethyl acetate extracts and IC₅₀ = 0.4 µg∙mL⁻¹ for the ethanol extract. Findings from the present study indicated that O. genistifolia could be a good source of strong antiplasmodial and antitrypanosomal agents.