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Amebicidal activity of the essential oils of Lippia spp. (Verbenaceae) against Acanthamoeba polyphaga trophozoites

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Abstract

Amoebic keratitis and granulomatous amoebic encephalitis are caused by some strains of free-living amoebae of the genus Acanthamoeba. In the case of keratitis, one of the greatest problems is the disease recurrence due to the resistance of parasites, especially the cystic forms, to the drugs that are currently used. Some essential oils of plants have been used as potential active agents against this protist. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the amebicidal activity of essential oils from plants of the genus Lippia against Acanthamoeba polyphaga trophozoites. To that end, 8 × 104 trophozoites were exposed for 24 h to increasing concentrations of essential oils from Lippia sidoides, Lippia gracilis, Lippia alba, and Lippia pedunculosa and to their major compounds rotundifolone, carvone, and carvacrol. Nearly all concentrations of oils and compounds showed amebicidal activity. The IC50 values for L. sidoides, L. gracilis L. alba, and L. pedunculosa were found to be 18.19, 10.08, 31.79, and 71.47 μg/mL, respectively. Rotundifolone, carvacrol, and carvone were determined as the major compounds showing IC50 of 18.98, 24.74, and 43.62 μg/mL, respectively. With the exception of oil from L. alba, the other oils evaluated showed low cytotoxicity in the NCI-H292 cell line. Given these results, the oils investigated here are promising sources of compounds for the development of complementary therapy against amoebic keratitis and granulomatous amoebic encephalitis and can also be incorporated into cleaning solutions to increase their amebicidal efficiency.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) and Fundação de Apoio à Pesquisa e Inovação Tecnológica do Estado de Sergipe (FAPITEC) for their financial support to conduct this research (Acordo CAPES/FAPITEC 2345/2012).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Morfologia, Laboratório de Entomologia e Parasitologia Tropical, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n, Roza Elze, CEP 49100-000, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil

    Israel Gomes de Amorim Santos & Silvio Santana Dolabella

  2. Departamento de Morfologia, Laboratório de Biologia Molecular de Bioagentes Patogênicos, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil

    Ricardo Scher

  3. Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Marilise Brittes Rott

  4. Departamento de Química, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil

    Leociley Rocha Menezes

  5. Departamento de Química, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil

    Emmanoel Vilaça Costa

  6. Departamento de Farmácia, Laboratório de Química Farmacêutica, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil

    Sócrates Cabral de Holanda Cavalcanti

  7. Departamento de Agronomia, Laboratório de Fitotecnia, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil

    Arie Fitzgerald Blank

  8. Departamento de Antibióticos, Laboratório de Bioensaios para Pesquisa de Fármacos, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil

    Jaciana dos Santos Aguiar & Teresinha Gonçalves da Silva

Authors
  1. Israel Gomes de Amorim Santos
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  2. Ricardo Scher
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  3. Marilise Brittes Rott
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  4. Leociley Rocha Menezes
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  5. Emmanoel Vilaça Costa
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  6. Sócrates Cabral de Holanda Cavalcanti
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  7. Arie Fitzgerald Blank
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  8. Jaciana dos Santos Aguiar
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  9. Teresinha Gonçalves da Silva
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  10. Silvio Santana Dolabella
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Silvio Santana Dolabella.

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Santos, I.G.d.A., Scher, R., Rott, M.B. et al. Amebicidal activity of the essential oils of Lippia spp. (Verbenaceae) against Acanthamoeba polyphaga trophozoites. Parasitol Res 115, 535–540 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-015-4769-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-015-4769-4

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