A preventive effect of the combination of albendazole and pomegranate peel aqueous extract treatment in cystic echinococcosis mice model: An alternative approach

Abstract To investigate the preventive effect of the combination of albendazole (ABZ) and pomegranate peel aqueous extract (PGE) treatment in cystic echinococcosis, we assess in vivo the antihydatic and the anti-inflammatory effects of the combination of ABZ/ PGE in cystic echinococcosis mice model. To evaluate the in vivo efficacy, mice were inoculated intraperitoneally with viable protoscolices and then treated with ABZ and/or PGE during cystic echinococcosis development. Mice were randomly allocated into eight groups: ABZ/CE group, PGE/CE group, (ABZ+PGE)/CE group, CE group, and control groups (Ctrl, PBS, ABZ, and PGE groups). Drugs in diverse treated groups were orally administered daily during CE development for two months. Mice were then euthanized and associated indications were investigated to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy. Cyst development and hepatic damage were macroscopically and histologically analyzed. The hepatic expression of iNOS, TNF-α, NF-κβ, vimentin, and CD68 was examined. Interestingly, the association of ABZ and PGE enhanced a significant reduction of the rate of hydatid cyst growth inhibition in comparison to the infected or ABZ-treated groups. This effect was strongly related to the histological structure of liver improvement. A significant iNOS, TNF-α, NF-κβ, vimentin, and CD68 decrease expression was observed in liver tissue of (ABZ+PGE)-treated group compared with infested and ABZ-treated groups. PGE treatment indicates a significant beneficial additive antihydatic effect with a reduction of the liver side effects. The combination of albendazole and PGE treatment is more efficient and suggests its potential preventive value against Echinococcus granulosus infection.