Natural Products, Medicinal Plants & Marine Drugs

Majority of deaths in children aged less than 5 years are due to Plasmodium falciparum malaria. Malaria deaths in children decreased but malaria remains a major killer of children, taking the life of a child every 2 minutes. This study aims to investigate the increase of the in vitro antiplasmodial activities by mutagenesis techniques using gamma-rays (Cs-137) or sodium azide (NaN3) as mutagens. It will allow the importance of mutagenesis use as tools for improvement of secondary metabolites against malarial parasites using chemical or physical mutagens. Aerial parts of plants M1 and M2 from Gammarays irradiation of P. odontadenius seeds or from immersion of P. odontadenius seeds in Sodium azide (SA) solutions were used as biological material for the in vitro antiplasmodial analysis. The in vitro antiplasmodial activities assays on clinical isolates of P. falciparum and on chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum strain K1 was determined using microscopic method, isotopic microtest method and using HRP2-based ELISA assay. Gamma-rays (Cs-137) increased (multiplied) the in vitro antiplasmodial activities from 2.48 up to 7.6 in comparison to control. Thus, the in vitro antiplasmodial activities were improved or exceeded from 147.57% up to 660% than those of control plant. SA had increased (multiplied) the in vitro antiplasmodial activities from 1.24 up to 10.15 comparing to the control plants. The in vitro antiplasmodial activities were exceeded compared to the control plants from 24.43% up to 915%. The treatments of Phyllanthus odontadenius seeds by Gamma-rays or by SA give plants with high in vitro antiplasmodial activities. Values of in vitro antiplasmodial activities varied from 1.24 (147.57%) to 10.15 (915%). 125, 150 and 225 Gy of Gamma-rays (Cs-137) for physical mutagenesis and 10.15 and 17.5 mm of SA solutions for the chemical mutagenesis could be used for improving in vitro antiplasmodial activities against P. falciparum (clinical isolates of P. falciparum or chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum strain K1). Thus, plants extracts from treated seeds have justified the usefulness of mutagens in plant breeding particularly in the increasing production of secondary metabolite against malarial parasite.