Rectification of Haematological Profile by Leaf Ethanolic Extracts of Carica papaya L. and Faidherbia albida (Del.) A. Chev to Treat Plasmodium berghei Malaria Infected Swiss Albino Mice

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Abstract Background: Malaria remains the major cause of morbidity and mortality in Nigeria; the most densely populated country in the African continent. The current economic depression and rising cost of conventional drugs call for urgent alternative therapy. A study was carried out to investigate the effects of Carica papaya and Faidherbia albida leaf ethanolic extracts on haematological profiles of Swiss albino mice infected with Plasmodium berghei. Methods: Fresh leaves of the test plants were collected and air dried, milled into powder and extracted using soxhlet apparatus with ethanol as the solvent. Thirty Swiss albino mice of both sexes weighing between 140 and 260g were used for the work. The animals were acclimatized for fourteen (14) days and divided into five groups. The animals were inoculated intraperitoneally with infected blood suspension containing about 1x106 paracetamia of P. berghei. Animals in group 1 were administered 0.2 ml normal saline, those in group 5 were administered Chloroquine diphosphate at 5 mg/kg body weight while those in groups 2, 3 and 4 were administered 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg of the ethanolic leaf extract respectively. Suppressive test last for 4 days and toxicity of the extracts on the infected mice was monitored. Haematological profiles of the infected mice were studied before infection, during infection and after treatment periods and average paracetamia counts using standard methods. Data obtained were analysed using Analysis of Variance with Duncan’s New Multiple Range Test used to separate significant means at 5%%. Results: Significant differences (P≤0.05) in the values of PCV, RBCs and WBCs were observed among the treated groups. The extracts stimulate increase in the number of Lymphocytes, Neutrophils, Monocytes, Eosinophils and Basophils with increase in concentration. The high doses of the extracts significantly (P≤0.05) reduce the number of parasitized erythrocytes among infected mice treated with C. papaya showing the highest (75.04%) suppression. Conclusions: The antiplasmodial activity of the extracts could be attributed to the active constituents such as: Flavonoids, alkaloids, anthraquinones, tannins, saponins, terpenoids/steriods, diterpenoids and cardiac glycosides in the extracts. We therefore recommended 400 mg/kg of C. papaya extract against malarial infections.

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