Abstract

LICONA-HERNANDEZ, Joseline; OLAVE-LEYVA, José Ignacio  and  OJEDA-RAMIREZ, Deyanira. Use of medicinal plants as an alternative for the treatment of fasciolasis. CienciaUAT [online]. 2024, vol.19, n.1, pp.61-73.  Epub Apr 11, 2025. ISSN 2007-7858.  https://doi.org/10.29059/cienciauat.v19i1.1846.

Fascioliasis is a disease produced by parasitic flatworms of the class trematoda and genus Fasciola that affects animals and humans. Despite its considerable impact on public health and the livestock, as well as its frequent reappearance, it is among the neglected tropical diseases. Furthermore, the indiscriminate use of synthetic fasciolicides in livestock has led to resistance of this trematode to the anthelmintics available on the market. For that, it is necessary to have new treatment alternatives. The aim of this work was to analyze recent advances worldwide on medicinal plants with an effect on Fasciola, reported in PubMed, Scopus, SciFinder and Google Scholar databases, between January 2019 and July 2023. We found information of 32 fasciolicide plants: seven of them with activity on eggs, three on larval stages, one on juveniles, and the rest on the adult stage of the parasite. Among the secondary metabolites responsible for the pharmacological activity, monoterpenes, alkaloids, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA’s), artemisin and phenolic compounds have been identified, highlighting curcumin and thymoquine. The findings reveal the potential use of plants as a source of new fasciolicidal active ingredients.

Keywords : Fasciola; medicinal plants; extracts; secondary metabolites.

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