In vivo antileishmanial activity of Annona mucosa extracts.

Leishmaniasis, a disease caused by a parasite endemic to large areas of tropical and subtropical countries, is a growing public health problem.Male BALB/c mice were infected with Leishmania amazonensis and treated with extracts isolated from Annona mucosa.Treated groups had significantly reduced footpad swelling. The group treated intraperitoneally with hexane extract showed footpad swelling similar to groups treated with Pentamidine® and Glucantime®. Groups treated with dichloromethane extract and hexane extract presented the recovering phenotype associated with reduced parasite levels.Extracts of A. mucosa are promising sources of novel antileishmanial compounds.