Antileishmanial Effect of Echinacea purpurea Root Extract Cultivated in Iran

Due to the limited availability of effective pharmaceutical products and serious side effects of the available therapy for leishmaniasis, search for useful medicinal plants is necessary. Previous studies reported preventative effect of Echinacea against Leishmania infections through immunologic stimulation. Here we tested concentrated ethanolic extract of the root of Echinacea purpurea prepared from Zardband Pharmaceutical Co. for its direct leishmanicidal activity in Leishmania culture. Leishmania major promastigotes (stationary phase) were cultured in different concentrations of the extract (0.5–125 mg/ml) for 30 min. Then the extract was removed and cell viability was determined during 120 h. LD50 for the promastigotes were determined as 22.3, 16.7, 3.66, 1.98 and 1.23 mg at 8, 16, 24, 48 and 72 h respectively. The results showed the irreversible leishmanicidal activity of the E. purpurea. Although all concentrations of the extract had antileishmanial effect, we suggest using this crude extract in concentrations of 50 mg/ml and more for application in related medicinal targets.