Laboratory Assessment of Molluscicidal Activities of Cannabis sativa , Acacia nilotica , and Tinospora cordifolia Against Snail Host of Fasciola spp.

Background: The potential molluscicidal extracts, obtained from indigenous plants Cannabis sativa , Acacia nilotica , and Tinospora cordifolia , were tested for toxicity against freshwater pulmonate snail Lymnaea acuminata , an intermediate host of Fasciola hepatica . The organic extracts had a significant effect on young snails. Materials and Methods: All organic extracts and column-purified fractions gave median lethal concentrations (19-100.05 mg/L; 24 h) that fell well within the threshold level of 100 mg/L, set for a potential molluscicide by the World Health Organization. Results: The toxicity of T. cordifolia stem acetone extract (96 h LC 50 : 16.08 mg/L) was more pronounced compared with C. sativa leaf ethanol extract (96 h LC 50 : 16.32 mg/L) and A. nilotica leaf ethanol extract (96 h LC 50 : 24.78 mg/L). β-caryophyllene, gallic acid, and berberine were characterized and identified as active molluscicidal components. Co-migration of β-caryophyllene (retardation factor [R f ] 0.95), gallic acid ( Rf 0.30), and berberine (R f 0.23) with column-purified parts of Cannabis sativa , Acacia nilotica , and Tinospora cordifolia on thin-layer chromatography demonstrates same R f value, that is, 0.95, 0.30, and 0.23, respectively. Conclusion: This study indicates that these extracts thus represent potential plant-derived molluscicides that are worthy of further investigations.