Antihelminic Effects of Echinacea purpurea in rat

Echinacea, also known as the purple coneflower, is an herbal medicine that has been used for centuries, customarily as a treatment for the common cold, coughs, bronchitis, upper respiratory infections, and some inflammatory conditions. Although a body of literature exists about the effects of different part of this herb on immune system to author’s knowledge there is a few reports available about antihelminic effects of Echinacea purpurea. So, this study was carried out to evaluate the antihelminic effects of this herb in rat. In the present study, 60 Rats were divided randomly into three groups. Group 1 and 2 were given 1% and 5% dried powdered Echinacea purpurea for 15 days, respectively. Groups 3 were used as controls groups. Stool samples were collected on days 0 (before trial) and 16. The results showed significant reduction in the OPG between test groups compared to control group and between day 16 compared to day 0 (P0.05). In conclusion, these results indicate that Echinacea purpurea has antihelminic effects in rat.