Essential oil from Chenopodium ambrosioides and main components: Activity against Leishmania, their mitochondria and other microorganisms

• Published in: Experimental parasitology 2014-01, Vol.136, p.20-26
• Main Authors: Monzote, Lianet, García, Marley, Pastor, Jacinta, Gil, Lizette, Scull, Ramón, Maes, Louis, Cos, Paul, Gille, Lars
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Antimicrobial activity; Ascaridole; Candida albicans - drug effects; Chelating Agents - pharmacology; Chenopodium ambrosioides; Chenopodium ambrosioides - chemistry; Cytochromes c - drug effects; Cytochromes c - metabolism; Escherichia coli - drug effects; Female; Inhibitory Concentration 50; Leishmania amazonensis; Leishmania infantum - drug effects; Leishmania infantum - ultrastructure; Leishmania mexicana - drug effects; Leishmania mexicana - ultrastructure; Macrophages, Peritoneal - drug effects; Macrophages, Peritoneal - parasitology; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial - drug effects; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mitochondria; Mitochondria - drug effects; Oils, Volatile - chemistry; Oils, Volatile - isolation & purification; Oils, Volatile - pharmacology; Plant Oils - chemistry; Plant Oils - isolation & purification; Plant Oils - pharmacology; Plasmodium falciparum - drug effects; Staphylococcus aureus - drug effects; Trichophyton - drug effects; Trypanosoma brucei brucei - drug effects; Trypanosoma cruzi - drug effects
• ISSN: 0014-4894; 1090-2449
• DOI: 10.1016/j.exppara.2013.10.007

[Display omitted] •Chenopodium ambrosioides oil showed potential antileishmanial activity.•Chenopodium oil caused better selectivity compared with its major components.•Products cause a breakdown of mitochondrial membrane potential and redox indexes.•Oil showed effect against Plasmodium falciparum and Trypanosoma brucei. Chenopodium ambrosioides is an aromatic herb used by native people to treat parasitic diseases. The aim of this work is to compare the in vitro anti-leishmanial activity of the essential oil (EO) from C. ambrosioides and its major components (ascaridole, carvacrol and caryophyllene oxide) and study their mechanism of action and activity against a panel of microorganism. Antileishmanial activity and cytotoxicity of the EO and major components was study. In addition, experiments to elucidate the mechanism of action were perform and activities against other microorganisms (bacteria, fungi and protozoa) were evaluate. All products were active against promastigote and amastigote forms of Leishmania. Ascaridole exhibited the better antileishmanial activity and the EO the highest selectivity index. The exploration of the mechanism suggests that the products cause a breakdown of mitochondrial membrane potential and a modification of redox indexes. Only EO showed antiprotozoal effect against Plasmodium falciparum and Trypanosoma brucei; while no activity against bacteria and fungi was observed. Our results demonstrate the potentialities of EO in cellular and molecular system, which could be consider in future studies to develop new antileishmanial drugs with a wide anti-parasitic spectrum.