The Protective Effect of Artemisia spicigera Ethanolic Extract against Cryptosporidium parvum Infection in Immunosup-pressed Mice

Background: a specific treatment has not yet developed for cryptosporidiosis, and some of the used drugs had side effects in immunodeficient patients. the goal of an appropriate remedy is to remove symptoms and improve immune re-sponses in hosts. the current study was designed to evaluate the therapeutic effi-cacy of artemisia spicigera ethanolic extract in experimentally infected immuno-suppressed mice. methods: thirty six nmri mice, 4-6 wk old, were randomly divided into six equal groups. c1: uninfected, treated control; c2: infected, untreated control; t1, t2, t3, and p: infected, treated with 0.2, 2, and 20 mg/ml extract, and 5mg/ml paromomycin, respectively. mice were experimentally infected by oral administra-tion of 104 oocysts/animal of cryptosporidium parvum and treated orally for eight days per 12h, starting 12h before experimental infection. the presence of oocyst shedding, weight gain/loss, and the histopathology of ileum sections were exam-ined. results: results revealed that oocyst shedding was significantly (p<0.05) reduced in treatment groups. there was no significant difference between the mean of weight gain/loss in the infected control and treated groups. histopathological analysis of ileum sections further supported the parasitological findings. conclusion: artemisia spicigera had acceptable efficacy as a therapeutic agent for cryptosporidiosis.