In vitro larvicidal and in vivo anthelmintic effects of Oxalis tetraphylla (Oxalidaceae) hydroalcoholic extract against Haemonchus contortus in lambs

The in vitro larvicidal and in vivo anthelmintic effects of Oxalis tetraphylla hydroalcoholic extract (HE), against Haemonchus contortus in experimentally infected lambs, were assessed. We used a microtitration plate method, comprising the following two stages. Stage 1: 20 μl of water containing 200 sheathed H. contortus infective larvae (ShHcl) were deposited in every well of three series; then, the series 2 and 3 wells were treated with 80 μl 1% ivermectin and O. tetraphylla HE at 20 mg/ml, respectively. Stage 2: the same procedure was performed replacing the ShHcl with exsheathed larvae (ExShHcl). Evaluations were performed after 24 and 48 h. The total numbers of dead and live larvae were counted. A second experiment evaluated the reduction in nematode egg populations in the faeces of lambs treated orally with the O. tetraphylla HE. The 27 lambs used were divided into Groups 1, 2 and 3 (n = 9), which were administered water (positive control), levamisole 1 m (7.5 mg/kg body weight (BW), as a unique dose) and O. tetraphylla HE (20 mg/kg BW), respectively. The plant HE was administered daily for 8 days. The in vitro assay showed 80.9% and 86.5% larval mortality of ShHcl after 24 and 48 h, respectively, while the corresponding mortality values for ExShHcl were 97 and 99%, respectively. The in vivo assay showed variability in the eggs/gram of faeces (epg) values; however, at the end of the trial, the average reduction in the epg values of the O. tetraphylla HE group was 45.6% (P < 0.05). Oxalis tetraphylla HE contains compounds that belong to the flavonol group with anthelmintic activity.