Anticestodal properties of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis L. (Malvaceae): an in vitro and in vivo study against Hymenolepis diminuta (Rudolphi, 1819), a zoonotic tapeworm.

The aim of this study was to investigate the in vitro and in vivo anticestodal effects of methanol extract of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis L. (Malvaceae) leaf against Hymenolepis diminuta (Rudolphi, 1819), a zoonotic tapeworm. Under the in vitro study, H. diminuta worms were exposed to 10, 20 and 40 mg/ml concentrations of methanol leaf extract and the effects were judged on the basis of physical motility/mortality of worms. On the other hand, in the case of in vivo study, H. diminuta infected rats were treated individually with 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg doses of leaf extract for 5 days. The effects were judged on the basis of reduction in eggs per gram (EPG) of faeces and worm counts. In case of in vitro test, the treatment with 40 mg/ml concentration of extract revealed prominent anticestodal effect and caused paralysis of worms in 3.00 ± 0.53 h and mortality in 4.08 ± 0.21 h. However, under in vivo study, the 800 mg/kg dose of extract revealed the highest anticestodal effect and caused 66.55 % reduction in EPG count and 75.00 % reduction in worm count in the treated animals. The results of this study indicated that H. rosa-sinesis leaf extract possesses concentration-dependent anticestodal effect against H. diminuta, indicating that the plant possesses promising active principle for the control of intestinal helminthic infections.