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Evaluation of the antiparasitic and antifibrotic effects of gallic acid on experimental hepatic schistosomiasis mansoni

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 January 2024

S. Sharaf-El-Deen Open the ORCID record for S. Sharaf-El-Deen [Opens in a new window] ,
S. Soliman  and
R. Brakat
S. Sharaf-El-Deen*
Affiliation:
Parasitology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebin-el-kom, Menoufia, Egypt
S. Soliman
Affiliation:
Public Health and Community Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebin-el-kom, Menoufia, Egypt
R. Brakat
Affiliation:
Parasitology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebin-el-kom, Menoufia, Egypt
*
Corresponding author: S. Sharaf-El-Deen, Email: shaymaa.sharafeldeen@med.menofia.edu.eg
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Abstract

Schistosomiasis afflicts approximately 120 million individuals globally. The hepatic pathology that occurs due to egg-induced granuloma and fibrosis is commonly attributed to this condition. However, there is currently no efficacious treatment available for either of these conditions.

Our study aimed to investigate the potential antifibrotic and antiparasitic properties of different doses of gallic acid (GA) in experimental schistosomiasis mansoni. In addition, we investigated the outcomes of co-administering it with the standard anti-schistosomiasis treatment, praziquantel (PZQ).

In experiment I, Schistosoma mansoni-infected mice were administered GA at doses of 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg. Their effectiveness was evaluated through parasitological (worm and egg loads, granuloma number and diameter), pathological (fibrosis percentage and H-score of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs)), and functional (liver enzymes) tests. In experiment II, we investigated the optimal dosage that yielded the best outcomes. This dosage was administered in conjunction with PZQ and was evaluated regarding the parasitological, pathological, functional, and immunological (fibrosis-regulating cytokines) activities.

Our findings indicate that the administration of 40 mg/kg GA exhibited the highest level of effectiveness in experiment I. In experiment II, it exhibited lower antiparasitic efficacy in comparison to PZQ. However, it surpassed PZQ in other tests. It showed enhanced outcomes when combined with PZQ.

In conclusion, our findings reveal that GA only slightly increased the antischistosomal activity of PZQ. However, it was linked to decreased fibrosis, particularly when administrated with PZQ. Our pilot study identifies GA as a natural antifibrotic agent, which could be administered with PZQ to mitigate the development of fibrosis.

Keywords

Schistosoma mansonigallic acidhepatic fibrosis
Type
Research Paper
Information
Journal of Helminthology , Volume 98 , 2024 , e3
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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