acute toxicity studies and anti-plasmodial potentials of newbouldia laevis and crateva adansonii in plasmodium berghei-infected mice

Background: newbouldia laevis and crateva adansonii are popular plants used traditionally in the management of patients with malaria infection in nigeria. in this study, the acute toxicity and anti-plasmodial effects of the leaf extracts of newbouldia laevis and crateva adansonii were investigated in mice.methods: the anti-plasmodial activities of both extracts were investigated individually and combined in mice infected with the chloroquine sensitive anka-65 lasmodium berghei strain. five groups of four mice each were used in our experiments. the ld50 was determined, using the line equation of the mortality against dose levels plot. results: the extracts of n. laevis and c. adansonii had a safety level of 200 mg/kg (ld50= 471.43 mg/kg) and 600 mg/kg (ld50=3,500 mg/kg), respectively. each experimental group was infected with p. berghei strain. the percent inhibition of parasitemia induced by the extracts of n. laevis and c. adansonii were 30.14±2.88% and 61.35±1.41%, respectively, compared to the 78.89% achieved for the standard drug (chloroquine). mice treated with the combined extracts had a parasite inhibition of 24.23±0.86%. upon the analysis of the extracts, there were tannins, steroids, flavonoids, saponins and alkaloids in both. the quantitative analyses revealed that tannins were the most abundant (261.85±4.76 mg/100 g & 92.71±6.58 mg/100 g) while saponins were the least abundant (15.09±1.13 mg/100 g & 14.08±1.28 mg/100 g) phytochemicals in both extracts. conclusion: the findings support the notion that the traditional use of either plant in the management of malaria in nigeria appears to be logical.