Peppermint (Mentha piperita) and albendazole against anisakiasis in an animal model

• Published in: Tropical medicine & international health 2014-12, Vol.19 (12), p.1430-1436
• Main Authors: Romero, Ma Carmen, Navarro, Ma Concepción, Martín‐Sánchez, Joaquina, Valero, Adela
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aceite Esencial de Menta; acétate de menthyl; Albendazol; albendazole; Albendazole - pharmacology; Albendazole - therapeutic use; Animals; anisakiase; anisakiasis; Anisakiasis - drug therapy; Anisakiasis - pathology; Anisakis - drug effects; Biological and medical sciences; Disease Models, Animal; Diseases caused by nematodes; Drug therapy; Female; General aspects; Helminthic diseases; Herbal medicine; huile essentielle de menthe poivrée; Infectious diseases; Larva - drug effects; Larva migrans syndromes; Medical sciences; Mentha piperita - chemistry; menthol; Menthol - pharmacology; Menthol - therapeutic use; menthone; menthyl acetate; Mentol; Mentona; Metilacetato; Miscellaneous; Oils, Volatile - chemistry; Oils, Volatile - pharmacology; Oils, Volatile - therapeutic use; Parasitic diseases; peppermint essential oil; Phytotherapy; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Plant Extracts - therapeutic use; Plant Oils - chemistry; Plant Oils - pharmacology; Plant Oils - therapeutic use; Rats, Wistar; Rodents; Species Specificity; Stomach - drug effects; Stomach - pathology
• ISSN: 1360-2276; 1365-3156
• DOI: 10.1111/tmi.12399

Objectives Therapy against anisakiasis requires invasive techniques to extract L3, and an effective drug against this nematode is needed. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of peppermint essential oil (EO) and its main components against the parasite in comparison to albendazole, a drug currently prescribed to treat anisakiasis. Methods We conducted in vitro experiments and studied an experimental model simulating the human infection in Wistar rats. We used polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism to identify A. simplex s.s. and A. pegreffii and determine any differences in their pathogenicity and susceptibility to the treatments. Results The in vitro and in vivo experiments both showed that the larvicidal activity of peppermint EO, menthol, menthone and menthyl acetate is higher than that of albendazole. Large stomach lesions were observed in 46.7% of the albendazole‐treated rats, whereas no gastrointestinal lesions were detected in those treated with peppermint EO, menthol, menthyl acetate or menthone. Conclusions In this animal model, treatment with peppermint EO or its main components was more effective than was treatment with albendazole. Lesions were more frequently produced by A. simplex s.s. larvae than by A. pegreffii larvae. Objectifs La thérapie contre l'anisakiase nécessite des techniques invasives pour extraire le parasite et un médicament efficace contre ce nématode est nécessaire. Le but de cette étude était de déterminer l'efficacité de l'huile essentielle (HE) de menthe poivrée et de ses principales composantes contre le parasite par rapport à l'albendazole, un médicament actuellement prescrit pour traiter l'anisakiase. Méthodes Nous avons effectué des expériences in vitro et avons étudié un modèle expérimental simulant l'infection humaine chez des rats Wistar. Nous avons utilisé le polymorphisme de la restriction de la taille des fragments de la réaction en chaîne de la polymérase pour identifier A. simplex s.s. et A. pegreffii et déterminer toutes les différences dans leur pathogénicité et la susceptibilité aux traitements. Résultats Les expériences in vitro et in vivo ont toutes les deux montré que l'activité larvicide de l’HE de menthe poivrée, du menthol, du menthone et de l'acétate de menthyle est supérieure à celle de l'albendazole. De larges lésions gastriques ont été observées chez 46,7% des rats traités par l'albendazole, alors qu'aucune lésions gastro‐intestinales n'a été détectée chez