Department of Biology

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A Comparative Study on the Efficacy of Some Ethiopian Traditional Taenicides as Tested on the Earthworm
(Addis Ababa,University, 1993-06) Masese, Geraldine; H. Meskal, Fisseha (PhD)
Intestinal parasitic infections represent serious medical and public health problems in many developing countries especially in the tropical regions. Taeniasis and cysticercosis have been recognized as important problems not only because of their impact on health but also because of economic losses resulting from condemnation of infected carcasses. The most frequently sold traditional medicines in Ethiopia are the taenicides. This is apparently due to the high prevalence of taeniasis in this country. Al though a nu.mber of writers have mentioned a list of traditional taenicidal drugs in Ethiopia, very little serious work has been carried ou.t to determine their relative efficacy. The present study is a contribution towards that end. Twelve traditional drugs used against human taeniasis in Ethiopia were screened for their taenicidal properties using the earthworm. The drugs were extracted using water and ethanol. The potency of the traditional drug extracts was compared with that of a commercial taeniacide, niclosamide. Resul ts showed that Hagenia abyssinica (Kosso) is the most potent traditional taeniacide, followed by Glinus lotoides (Mettere), Albizia anthelmintica (Musenna), and, Myrsine africana (Ketchemo) in that order.