Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

A round-up of the ONWARDS phase 3 clinical trials evaluating the novel weekly insulin icodec in people with diabetes.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies
Published in: BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies 1/2016

Open Access 01-12-2016 | Research article

Essential oils: in vitro activity against Leishmania amazonensis, cytotoxicity and chemical composition

Authors: Milene Aparecida Andrade, Clênia dos Santos Azevedo, Flávia Nader Motta, Maria Lucília dos Santos, Camila Lasse Silva, Jaime Martins de Santana, Izabela M. D. Bastos

Published in: BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies | Issue 1/2016

Login to get access

Abstract

Background

The current chemotherapy for cutaneous leishmaniosis (CL) has a series of drug limitations such as toxic side effects, long duration, high costs and drug resistance, which requires the development of new drugs or effective alternatives to the CL treatment. Essential oils (EOs) are complex mixtures of secondary metabolites from various plants. It has been shown that several EOs, or their constituents, have inhibitory activity against protozoa. Thus, this study aims to evaluate the biological activity of different essential oils (EOs) on Leishmania (L.) amazonensis promastigotes forms, as well as their cytotoxicity on mammalian cells and chemical composition.

Methods

Sixteen EOs were evaluated by mean of IC50/24 h and cytotoxicity against L6 cells (CC50/24 h) using Resazurin assay. Only those EOs that presented better results for IC50/24 h were submitted to GC–MS analysis to determine their chemical constitution.

Results

The EO from Cinnamodendron dinisii, Matricaria chamomilla, Myroxylon peruiferum, Salvia sclarea, Bulnesia sarmientoi, Ferula galbaniflua, Siparuna guianensis and Melissa officinalis were the most active against L. amazonensis with IC50/24 h ranging from 54.05 to 162.25 μg/mL. Analysis of EOs by GC–MS showed mainly the presence of β-farnesene (52.73 %) and bisabolol oxide (12.09 %) for M. chamomilla; α-copaene (13.41 %), safrole (8.35 %) and δ-cadinene (7.08 %) for M. peruiferum; linalool (28.80 %) and linalyl acetate (60.08 %) for S. sclarea; guaiol (48.29 %) and 2-undecanone (19.49 %) for B. sarmientoi; ethyl phthalate (13.09 %) and methyl-8-pimaren-18-oate (41.82 %) for F. galbaniflua; and neral (37.18 %) and citral (5.02 %) for M. officinalis.

Conclusion

The EO from F. galbaniflua showed to be effective against L. amazonensis promastigotes forms and presented low cytotoxic activity against L6 cells. Thus, it represents a strong candidate for future studies aiming its molecular activity on these pathogenic parasites.
Literature
1.
2.
3.
4.
Alvar J, Vélez ID, Bern C, Herrero M, Desjeux P, Cano J, et al. Leishmaniasis worldwide and global estimates of its incidence. PloS One. 2012;7:e35671.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
5.
6.
7.
Name RQ, Borges KT, Nogueira LSC, Sampaio JHD, Tauil PL, Sampaio RNR. Clinical, epidemiological and therapeuthic study of 402 patients with american cutaneous leishmaniasis attended at University Hospital of Brasilia, DF, Brazil. Ann Bras Dermatol. 2005;80:249–54.CrossRef
8.
9.
10.
Reithinger R, Dujardin JC, Louzir H, Pirmez C, Alexander B, Brooker S. Cutaneous leishmaniasis. Lancet Infect Dis. 2007;7:581–96.CrossRefPubMed
11.
Ben Salah A, Ben Messaoud N, Guedri E, Zaatour A, Ben Alaya N, Bettaieb J. Topical paromomycin with or without gentamicin for cutaneous leishmaniasis. N Engl J Med. 2013;368:524–32.CrossRefPubMed
12.
Utaile M, Kassahun A, Abebe T, Hailu A. Susceptibility of clinical isolates of Leishmania aethiopica to miltefosine, paromomycin, amphotericin B and sodium stibogluconate using amastigote-macrophage in vitro model. Exp Parasitol. 2013;134:68–75.CrossRefPubMed
13.
Azeredo CMO, Santos TG, Maia BHLNS, Soares MJ. In vitro biological evaluation of eight different essential oils against Trypanosoma cruzi, with emphasis on Cinnamomum verum essential oil. BMC Complementary Altern Med. 2014;14:309–15.CrossRef
14.
Bakkali F, Averbeck S, Averbeck D, Idaomar M. Biological effects of essential oils - A review. Food Chem Toxicol. 2008;46:446–75.CrossRefPubMed
15.
Singh G, Maurya S, Lampasona MP, Catalan CAN. A comparison of chemical, antioxidant and antimicrobial studies of cinnamon leaf and bark volatile oils, oleoresins and their constituents. Food Chem Toxicol. 2007;45:1650–61.CrossRefPubMed
16.
Victoria FN, Lenardão EJ, Savegnago L, Perin G, Jacob RG, Alves D, Da Silva WP, Motta AS, Nascente OS. Essential oil of the leaves of Eugenia uniflora L.: antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Food Chem Toxicol. 2012;50:2668–74.CrossRefPubMed
17.
Ueda-Nakamura T, Mendonça-Filho RR, Morgado-Díaz JA, Maza PK, Prado Dias Filho B, Cortez DAD, Alviano DS, Rosa MS, Lopes AH, Alviano CS, Nakamura CV. Antileishmanial activity of eugenol-rich essential oil from Ocimum gratissimum. Parasitol Int. 2006;55:99–105.CrossRefPubMed
18.
Santos AO, Ueda-Nakamura T, Dias Filho BP, Veiga Junior VF, Pinto AC, Nakamura CV. Effect of Brazilian copaiba oils on Leishmania amazonensis. J Ethnopharmacol. 2008;120:204–8.CrossRefPubMed
19.
Medeiros MGF, Silva AC, Citó AMGL, Borges AR, Lima SG, Lopes JAD, Figueiredo RCBQ. In vitro antileishmanial activity and cytotoxicity of essential oil from Lippia sidoides Cham. Parasitol Int. 2011;60:237–41.CrossRefPubMed
20.
Andrade MA, Cardoso MG, Andrade J, Silva LF, Teixeira ML, Resende JV, Figueiredo ACS, Barroso J. Chemical Composition and Antioxidant Activity of Essential Oils from Cinnamodendron dinisii Schwacke and Siparuna guianensis Aublet. Antioxidants. 2013;2:384–97.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
21.
Guimarães LGL, Cardoso MG, Zacaroni LM, Lima RK, Pimentel F, Morais AR. Influência da luz e da temperatura sobre a oxidação do óleo essencial de capim-limão (Cymbopogon citratus (D.C.) STAPF). Quim Nova. 2008;31:1476–80.CrossRef
22.
Adams RP. Identification of Essential oil Components by Gas Chromatography/ Mass Spectroscopy. 4th ed. IL: Allured Publishing Corporation; 2007.
23.
O’Brien J, Wilson I, Orton T, Pognan F. Investigation of the Alamar Blue (resazurin) fluorescent dye for the assessment of mammalian cell cytotoxicity. Eur J Biochem. 2000;267:5421–6.CrossRefPubMed
24.
Raz B, Iten M, Grether-Buhler Y, Kaminsky R, Brun R. The Alamar Blue assay to determine drug sensitivity of African trypanosomes (T. b. rhodesiense and T. b. gambiense) in vitro. Acta Trop. 1997;68:139–47.CrossRefPubMed
25.
Andrade MA, Cardoso MG, Gomes MS, Azeredo CMO, Batista LR, Soares MJ, Rodrigues LMA, Figueiredo ACS. Biological Activity of the Essential Oils from Cinnamodendron dinisii and Siparuna guianensis. Braz J Microbiol. 2015;46:189–94.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
26.
27.
28.
Machado RRP, Valente Júnior W, Lesche B, Coimbra ES, Souza NB, Abramo C, et al. Essential oil from leaves of Lantana camara: a potential source of medicine against leishmaniasis. Rev Bras Farmacogn. 2012;22:1011–7.CrossRef
29.
Gawde A, Cantrell CL, Zheljazkov VD, Astatkie T, Schlegel V. Steam distillation extraction kinetics regression models to predict essential oil yield, composition, and bioactivity of chamomile oil. Ind Crops Prod. 2014;58:61–7.CrossRef
30.
31.
Ghannadi A, Amree S. Volatile oil constituents of Ferula gummosa Boiss. from Kashan, Iran. J Essent Oil Res. 2002;14:420–42.CrossRef
32.
Kouyakhi ET, Naghavi MR, Alayhs M. Study of the essential oil variation of Ferula gummosa samples from Iran. Chem Nat Compounds. 2008;44:124–6.CrossRef
33.
Sahebkar A, Iranshahi M. Volatile Constituents of the Genus Ferula (Apiaceae): A Review. J Essent Oil-Bear Plants. 2011;14:504–31.CrossRef
34.
35.
Dutta S, Mallick M, Kumar K, Mann U, Greenwood PF. Terpenoid composition and botanical affinity of Cretaceous resins from India and Myanmar. Int J Coal Geol. 2011;85:49–55.CrossRef
36.
Rodilla JM, Silva LA, Martinez N, Lorenzo D, Davyt D, Castillo L, Giménez C, Cabrera R, González-Coloma A, Zrostlíkováf J, Dellacassa E. Advances in the identification and agrochemical importance of sesquiterpenoids from Bulnesia sarmientoi essential oil. Ind Crops Prod. 2011;33:497–503.CrossRef
37.
Rottini MM, Amaral ACF, Ferreira JLP, Silva JRA, Taniwaki, Souza CSF, d'Escoffier LN, Almeida-Souza F, Hardoim DJ, Costa SCG, Calabrese KS. In vitro evaluation of (−) α-bisabolol as a promising agent against Leishmania amazonensis. Exp Parasitol. 2015;148:66–72.CrossRefPubMed
38.
Pitarokili D, Couladis M, Petsikos-Panayotarou N, Tzakou O. Composition and antifungal activity on soil-borne pathogens of the essential oil of Salvia sclarea from Greece. J Agric Food Chem. 2002;50:6688–91.CrossRefPubMed
39.
Kuźma L, Kalemba D, Różalski M, Różalska B, Więckowska-Szakiel M, Krajewska U, Wysokińska H. Chemical composition and biological activities of essential oil from Salvia sclarea plants regenerated in vitro. Molecules. 2009;14:1438–47.CrossRefPubMed
40.
Rosa MSS, Mendonça-Filho RR, Bizzo HR, Rodrigues IA, Soares RMA, Souto-Padrón T, Alviano CS, Lopes AHCS. Antileishmanial activity of a linalool-rich essential oil from Croton cajucara. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2003;47:1895–901.CrossRefPubMedCentral
41.
Sadraei H, Ghannadib A, Malekshahia K. Relaxant effect of essential oil of Melissa officinalis and citral on rat ileum contractions. Fitoterapia. 2003;74:445–52.CrossRefPubMed
42.
Mimica-Dukic N, Bozin B, Sokovic M, Simin N. Antimicrobial and Antioxidant activities of Melissa officinalis L. (Lamiaceae) essential oil. J Agric Food Chem. 2004;52:2485–9.CrossRefPubMed
43.
Silva S, Sato A, Lage CLS, Gil S, Silva RA, Azevedo, Almeida D, Esquibel MA. Essential oil composition of Melissa officinalis L. in vitro produced under the influence of growth regulators. J Braz Chem Soc. 2005;16:1387–90.CrossRef
44.
Mikus J, Harkenthal M, Steverding D, Reichling J. In vitro effect of essential oils and isolated mono- and sesquiterpenes on Leishmania major and Trypanosoma brucei. Planta Med. 2000;66:366–8.CrossRefPubMed
45.
Santoro GF, Cardoso MG, Guimarães LGL, Freire JM, Soares MJ. Antiproliferative effect of the essential oil of Cymbopogon citratus (DC) Stapf (lemongrass) on intracelular amastigotes, bloodstream trypomastigotes and culture epimastigotes of Trypanosoma cruzi (Protozoa: Kinetoplastida). Parasitology. 2007;13:1649–56. http://​www.​ncbi.​nlm.​nih.​gov/​pubmed/​17686189. Accessed 05 Apr 2015.
46.
Brenzan MA, Nakamura CV, Filho BPD, Ueda-Nakamura T, Young MCM, Cortez DAG. Antileishmanial activity of crude extract and coumarin from Calophyllum brasiliense leaves against Leishmania amazonensis. Parasitol Res. 2007;101:715–22.CrossRefPubMed
47.
Borges AR, Aires JR, Higino TM. Trypanocidal and cytotoxic activities of essential oils from medicinal plants of Northeast of Brazil. Exp Parasitol. 2012;132:123–8.CrossRefPubMed
Metadata
Title
Essential oils: in vitro activity against Leishmania amazonensis, cytotoxicity and chemical composition
Authors
Milene Aparecida Andrade
Clênia dos Santos Azevedo
Flávia Nader Motta
Maria Lucília dos Santos
Camila Lasse Silva
Jaime Martins de Santana
Izabela M. D. Bastos
Publication date
01-12-2016
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies / Issue 1/2016
Electronic ISSN: 2662-7671
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-016-1401-9

Other articles of this Issue 1/2016

BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies 1/2016 Go to the issue

Research article

Asiatic acid influences parasitaemia reduction and ameliorates malaria anaemia in P. berghei infected Sprague–Dawley male rats

Research article

Herbal preparation (HemoHIM) enhanced functional maturation of bone marrow-derived dendritic cells mediated toll-like receptor 4

Research article

Acute and chronic toxicities of Bacopa monnieri extract in Sprague-Dawley rats

Research article

Histopathological and biochemical investigations of protective role of honey in rats with experimental aflatoxicosis

Research article

Effects of naturopathic medicines on Multiplate and ROTEM: a prospective experimental pilot study in healthy volunteers

Research article

Anti-cancer activity of Psoralea fructus through the downregulation of cyclin D1 and CDK4 in human colorectal cancer cells