AVANCES SOBRE EL USO DE OCHO PLANTAS TROPICALES PARA EL CONTROL DE GARRAPATAS Y NEMATODOS GASTROINTESTINALES EN BOVINOS, EQUINOS Y CANINOS

Abstract

Background. Ticks and gastrointestinal nematodes negatively affect the health, welfare and production of domestic animals. Additionally, some parasites represent a zoonotic potential and have developed acaricidal and anthelmintic resistance to the main drugs used for their control. Due to this, the current interest for the prevention and control of these parasites is focused on the search for control alternatives, emphasizing the use of plant extracts and their secondary metabolites with acaricidal and anthelmintic activity. Objective. To present the main advances that have been made on the use of eight tropical plants from the Yucatán peninsula for the control of ticks and nematodes in bovines, equines and canines. Methodology. Scientific articles and unpublished works of the studies carried out by the working group of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnics of the Autonomous University of Yucatán and the Scientific Research Center of Yucatán were compiled. The review focused on the use of extracts from eight plants and the active compounds of Petiveria alliacea against Rhipicephalus microplus larvae and adults, and the compounds of Diospyros anisandra against eggs of nematodes of Ancylostoma caninum, Haemonchus placei and cyathostomins. Main findings. Studies on extracts of Bursera simaruba, Caesalpinia gaumeri, Casearia corymbosa, D. anisandra, Havardia albicans, P. alliacea, Solanum tridynamum and S. erianthum, and demonstrated their acaricidal potential against acaricide-resistant R. microplus larvae. P. alliacea also showed high percentages of mortality in adult R. microplus ticks, as well as oviposition inhibition and hatching inhibition. The acaricidal activity was attributed to the presence of the compounds dibenzyl trisulfide and dibenzyl disulfide, which cause histological damage to the reproductive system of adult females, affecting the oogenesis process. P. alliacea also demonstrated broad-spectrum anthelmintic activity against A. caninum, H. placei, and cyathostomin eggs. In D. anisandra, high anthelmintic activity was reported. Its main compound, plumbagin, was attributed the responsibility of this high biological activity, even at very low concentrations. On the other hand, a difference was observed in the acaricidal and anthelmintic activity depending on the part of the plant and the time of collection for both plants. Implications. Further studies are required to identify active anthelmintic compounds from P. alliacea, to elucidate the mechanisms of action of these compounds, and to explore the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of the acaricidal and anthelmintic compounds from both plants for safe and effective in vivo studies. Conclusions. The extracts of the eight evaluated plants showed high acaricidal activity against R. microplus resistant to acaricides. The extracts of P. alliacea, D. anisandra and their active compounds also present high broad-spectrum anthelmintic activity against nematodes of the order strongylida, for which they represent a potential alternative for control against ticks and nematodes of domestic animals.