In vitro efficacy of plumbagin and thymol against Theileria annulata.

ABSTRACT

Phytochemical compounds, plumbagin and thymol were evaluated for their efficacy against Theileria annulata using MTT cell viability assay. Plumbagin and thymol were found to be effective in preventing the proliferation of Theileria annulata infected bovine lymphocytes. The IC50 values of plumbagin and thymol were 0.019 µM and 0.009 µM, respectively. Plumbagin and thymol were found to be non-cytotoxic to the bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells. However, both the compounds were found to have inhibitory effect on vero cell proliferation. Plumbagin had primarily anti-theilerial activity but thymol had primarily anti-mitotic activity. The in vitro efficacy and cell toxicity studies indicate the potential application of plumbagin, purified from Plumbago indica as a lead therapeutic molecule against T. annulata infection in cattle. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12639-022-01550-x.