Phytochemical Analysis, Antimalarial Properties, and Acute Toxicity of Aqueous Extracts of Trisamo and Jatu-Phala-Tiga Recipes

Drug resistance remains a significant problem that threatens antimalarial drug treatment. Hence, the challenge is to find new effective antimalarial drugs. Based on our previous study, aqueous extracts of trisamo (TSM) and jatu-phala-tiga (JPT) had good in vitro antimalarial activities, and these recipes contain multiple beneficial pharmacological effects that could be useful for malaria therapy. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the antimalarial activity and toxicity of the aqueous extracts of TSM and JPT in mouse models. The aqueous extractions were carried out using the decoction method. Compound identification was conducted using LC-QTOF-MS analysis. The antimalarial activities of TSM and JPT at doses 200, 400, and 600 mg/kg were evaluated against Plasmodium berghei ANKA infection using a four-day suppressive test. The toxic effects of oral administration of the extracts at 2 g/kg dose were determined using an acute toxicity test. The chemical constituents of TSM contained 83 compounds, whereas JPT contained 84 compounds. All doses of the extracts exhibited a significant suppression (p < 0.05) of the parasite compared to the negative control in a four-day test. The maximum activities were observed at 600 mg/kg dose with 67.02% suppression for TSM and 79.34% for JPT, followed by 400 mg/kg dose (57.63% for TSM and 64.79% for JPT) and then 200 mg/kg dose (52.35% for TSM and 54.46% for JPT). In addition, there were no significant differences (p < 0.05) in the RBC, MCV, and MCH levels of mice receiving JPT extract compared to the uninfected control. The WBC level of mice receiving 400 and 600 mg/kg of TSM, and 200 and 400 mg/kg of JPT, was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than the infected control, and the extracts did not significantly prevent the loss of platelets. For the acute toxicity test, there were no signs of toxicity or deaths in mice, and there were no differences in the histology, weight, or enzyme biochemistry of the liver and kidney between the extract and vehicle groups. However, the platelet count in the extract-treated mice was significantly higher than that in the control group. In conclusion, this study suggests that aqueous extracts of TSM and JPT have potent antimalarial activities and could be promising as new candidates for antimalarial drug development.