New anthelmintics from African medicinal plant.
In Africa, Ozoroa insignis is used as a traditional medicinal plant against parasites such as tapeworms and hookworms. IPB chemists, together with partners from Cameroon, Botswana and Switzerland, have now identified some of the substances causing such an anthelmintic effect. To this end, the team focused on the Ozoroa plant fruits, which have been poorly investigated so far. In a bioassay with the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the scientists isolated three highly active worm-toxic compounds. Structure elucidation by NMR spectroscopic and mass spectrometric analyses revealed these compounds as penta- and heptadecenyl derivatives of anacardic acid and phenol, respectively. Thereafter, the chemists analyzed the compounds‘ effect on five different human pathogenic parasites. All three substances proved to be extremely active against the causative agent of schistosomiasis, the sucking worm Schistostoma mansoni. The Halle scientists could also demonstrate antiproliferative activities on various adenocarcinomas for the newly discovered anthelmintics.
Original Publication:
Mthandazo Dube, Mohamad Saoud, Robert Rennert, Ghislain Wabo Fotso, Kerstin Andrae-Marobela, Peter Imming, Cécile Häberli, Jennifer Keiser & Norbert Arnold. Anthelmintic Activity and Cytotoxic Effects of Compounds Isolated from the Fruits of Ozoroa insignis Del. (Anacardiaceae). Biomolecules 2021, 11(12), 1893; https://doi.org/10.3390/biom11121893
