EFFECTS OF MELIA AZEDARACH EXTRACT ON T. CRUZI EPIMASTIGOTES PROLIFERATION

L. FRACCAROLI,; MD, RUIZ; TORRES, PS; L. LAROCCA; CARRILLO C; DE PINO, V

Congreso; REUNIÓN ANUAL DE SOCIEDADES DE BIOCIENCIA 2019; 2019

Chagas disease is an endemic parasitosiscaused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi). Thecurrent therapies are limited in efficacy and show multiple sideeffects. Thus, there is a need to identify new effective andspecific trypanocidal strategies. Melia azedarach (MA), native ofAsia but widely distributed in several countries, known as?Paraíso?, has been described to have therapeutic propertiessuch as antifungal and antihelmintic. The aim of this work was toevaluate the effect of extracts obtained from ripe fruits from MAin the proliferation of T. cruzi epimastigotes. To approach thisaim we performed MA extracts using water, ethanol and DMSOas solvents. We tested the extracts in cultures of epimastigotesfrom the Y-GFP strain in concentrations between 0 and 6 mg/ml.We observed that only DMSO extracts dose dependentlydecreased the proliferation of the parasites. The IC50 calculatedat day 4 of culture was 0.94 mg/ml (0.81-1.09 mg/ml). Toevaluate the stability, we stored the extract at 4 and -20 ºCduring 15 days. Then, we calculated the IC50 of both in Y-GFPepimastigotes observing that the storage at -20 ºC maintainedthe activity while the extract at 4 ºC decreased its activity byhalf. We tested the citotoxicity of the DMSO extract in Vero cellline with MTT assay, calculating a selectivity index of 1.2. While itis not optimal, it is proximal to those obtained for Nifurtimox orBenznidazole. We performed an HPLC separation of the extractrecollecting different fractions. Preliminary results showed thatthe individual fractions did not decrease epimastigotesproliferation, while the pool of those fractions restored the effect.The results present herein propose that the extracts obtainedfrom ripe fruits of MA have bioactive compounds that affect theproliferation and viability of T. cruzi epimastigotes suggestingthat the citotoxic activity may be the result of the interaction ofdifferent compounds present in the extract.