Coccidiosis is a protozoan parasitic disease caused by Eimeria species and affects wild and domestic animals. Coccidiostats are currently available to control this disease, although drug resistance has been confirmed for all of them. As a result, there is an urgent need to identify eco-friendly agents to control and treat this disease. This study aimed to investigate the ameliorative role of the Krameria lappacea roots extract (KLRE) on the outcome of coccidiosis induced by Eimeria papillata. Male C57BL/6 mice were divided into seven groups (5 mice/group), as follows: Group 1: noninfected-nontreated (control group), Group 2: noninfected-treated group with KLRE (200 mg/kg), Group 3: infected-nontreated group, Group 4: infected-treated group with KLRE (50 mg/kg), Group 5: infected-treated group with KLRE (100 mg/kg), Group 6: infected-treated group with KLRE (200 mg/kg), and Group 7: infected-treated group with amprolium (120 mg/kg). Groups (3-7) were inoculated orally with 1 × 103 sporulated E. papillata oocysts. One hour after infection, groups (4-6) were daily treated for 5 days with KLRE and amprolium. On day 5 postinfection, oocyst output was determined, and mice were euthanized for the collection of jejuna then preparation of histological sections and jejunal homogenate was used for the determination of biochemical and oxidative damage markers. The coccidial infection induced weight loss of mice by 3.971%, which improved after KLRE to -1.512%. After KLRE treatment, the rate of feed intake was improved to be 52.21 ± 2.30 than those in infected group (40.47 ± 2.25). Oocyst output was significantly reduced in mice treated with KLRE (1.308 × 106 oocysts/g.feces) compared with those in the infected group (5.387 × 106 oocysts/g.feces). E. papillata infection induced marked histological alterations within jejunum tissue. After treatment, KLRE was able to impair the development of parasite stages (meronts, gamonts, and developing oocysts) in the jejunum through a significant reduction of number and size in comparison with the infected group. Infection with E. papillata induced a disturbance in the nutrient absorption in the jejunal mice tissue, which improved after the treatment with KLRE and amprolium. Also, KLRE counteracted significantly the E. papillata-induced loss of reduced glutathione and total antioxidant capacity. Our findings indicate that KLRE could be used as an alternative to the available coccidiostats currently available. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Krameria lappacea exhibit significant anticoccidial and antioxidant activities induced by E. papillata infection. Krameria lappacea exhibit significant improvement in the pathological alterations of the jejunal tissue induced by E. papillata infection.
Keywords: Eimeria papillata; Krameria lappacea; coccidiosis; coccidiostats; natural plants.
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