Studying the effect of biocompounds extracted from Ganoderma lucidum on the viability of the Leishmania donovani parasite using the MTT assay

Ganoderma lucidum extract and Leishmania donovani

Abstract

Background: Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by an intracellular parasite transmitted to humans through the bite of a sandfly. It is endemic in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and the Mediterranean region. Clinical manifestations depend on the Leishmania species and the host's immune response, visceral leishmaniasis can be subacute or chronic. Pentostam (also known as stibogluconate) is the conventional treatment for leishmaniasis, However, resistance to visceral leishmaniasis in India has led to the development of new treatment approaches, Despite significant advances in diagnosis and treatment, leishmaniasis continues to cause serious outbreaks in various parts of the world, Current obstacles to effective prevention and management include inadequate vector control (sandflies), the lack of a vaccine, and insufficient access to affordable medicines, Aim:  This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of biosynthetic compounds using Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi mushroom), Methodology: Leishmania donovani parasites were cultured in the promastigote stage and then treated with an aqueous extract of Ganoderma lucidum, a Ganoderma lucidum nanocomposite, and a mixture of these with pentostam at different concentrations. Parasite viability was assessed using the MTT assay, and the inhibition percentage was determined using spectrophotometry.Results: The cytotoxicity assay

results for the treatments (aqueous extract of Reishi mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum nanocomposite – aqueous extract + Pentostam – mushroom nanocomposite + Pentostam) showed varying activity in inhibiting the promastigote stage of Leishmania donovani parasite depending on the treatment type and dosage, Using the MTT assay, the treatment with the highest volume addition (Nano + SB (1 ml), in dose 100 µl/ml) exhibited the strongest inhibitory effect on the promastigote stage of the parasite after treatment, with a The Nano + SB (1 ml) treatment produced the highest inhibition (88%; P ≤ 0.05). Meanwhile, the drug treatment with Nano + SB (0.5 ml), in100 µl/ml from it , showed a cell growth inhibitory effect, Its percentage reached (87%), while the GL-Extract treatment, which was represented by the lowest volume addition of the therapeutic agents (25 µl/ml), gave a percentage inhibition of (39%), which represented the lowest percentage of antiparasitic growth effect, which is due to the lowest therapeutic treatment of the drug spectrum under study, compared to the percentage of inhibition of the negative control group N-Control, The results were read in the ELISA-Reader device. Conclusions: The findings suggest that Ganoderma lucidum nanocomposites, particularly when combined with Pentostam, exhibited greater antiparasitic activity than the aqueous extract alone.