Antifilarial Effect of a Combination of Botanicals from Acacia auriculiformis and Centella asiatica on Canine Dirofilariasis

Abstract

A mixture (1:1) of the ethanol extracts from the leaves of Centella asiatica and the funicles of Acacia auriculiformis was administered orally to pariah dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis at 0.04 mg/g body weight/d for 45 days. Two triterpenoid saponins, acaciaside A and B, isolated from the funicles of A. auriculiformis were combined with the leaf ethanol extract from C. asiatica (1:1) and tested at 0.04 mg/g body weight/d for 45 days on microfilaraemic dogs. There was an initial fluctuation in the microfilarial (mf) count in the blood following treatment with the mixture of crude extracts, and then the mf density decreased up to 99%. This suppression lasted for 120 days. When treated with the saponins mixed with the C. asiatica ethanol extract, there was an 86% reduction in mf density 30 days after the last date of treatment, and 68% reduction was maintained 120 days after the treatment.