Preclinical Evaluation of the Antimalarial Activity of Persea Americana Seed Methanol Extract in Plasmodium Berghei Infected Mice

Generally, avocado seeds are discarded after the consumption of the fleshy part of the fruit. Given its rich phytochemical and biochemical profile, disposal represents a huge economic loss. We thus assessed the toxicity and antimalarial potential of avocado seed methanol extract using the OECD and Peters’ 4-day suppressive antimalarial testing methods, respectively. For the acute toxicity study, 2 g/kg body weight of the extract was investigated. The antimalarial study was conducted using mice infected with 1 x 105 Plasmodium berghei NK65. Twenty-five male mice were randomly distributed into five groups of five mice. They were all infected with P. berghei. Three hours after infection, groups 1 and 2 mice received normal saline and chloroquine (25 mg/kg body weight), respectively. The mice in the other groups received graded doses (100, 250 and 500 mg/kg b.wt.) of the extract. Treatment was done for a total of 4 days, while survival was assessed within 30 days. The extract was non-toxic to mice at 2 g/kg body weight and graded doses reduced parasitemia in a dose-dependent manner. Parasite killing may be due to its high antioxidative capacity. Alarmingly, treatment with higher doses of the extract resulted in increased mortality, which is suggestive of toxicity. A chronic toxicity study may reveal the potential toxicity of avocado seed methanol extract, which may have been missed in our acute toxicity study. Furthermore, as its bioactive principle(s)may be selective for the malaria parasite, their isolation may guide the development of a robust extraction method that would guarantee potency and safety.