Comparison of artemisinin content and anti-malaria effects of Artemisia annua L. and Artemisia scoparia Waldst. & Kit.

Artemisia annua L. and Artemisia scoparia Waldst. & Kit. are two important medicinal plants, distributed in many parts of the world. Malaria is an infectious disease in humans and animals caused by various species of the genus Plasmodium, protozoan parasite begins. In this study, artemisinin and terpenoids were extracted from Artemisia annua and Artemisia scoparia. The terpenoids and artemisinin content was measured by spectrophotometry methods. The terpenoids were detected by Thin-Layer Chromatography and Mass Gas Chromatography. The antimalarial effects of the study extracts were measured based on the inhibitory effect of the extracts on in vitro formation of β-hematin (hemazoin). According to the results, it seemed that all extracts contained artemisinin. However, the results of Thin-Layer Chromatography (TLC) and Mass Gas Chromatography (GC-Mass) showed that the acetonitrile extract (artemisininic extract) of Artemisia annua contained artemisinin and several kinds of terpenoids. The extract of A. scoparia was lack of artemisinin despite containing lots of terpenoids. The inhibitory effects of the study extracts on the in vitro formation of β-hematin (hemazoin) showed that the acetonitrile and aquatic extracts of the shoots and roots of A. annua and A. scoparia had antimalarial effects. The inhibitory effects of acetonitrile extract of A. annua shoots was double of the artemisininic extract of A. scoparia shoots and the aquatic extract of A. annua shoots and roots. The acetonitrile extract of A. annua contained artemisinin. The inhibitory effect of other extracts on the in vitro formation of β-hematin (hemozoin) showed the antimalarial effects of other terpenes in the extracts. The inhibitory effect of all extracts, except the aqueous extract of shoots and the acetonitrile extract of roots in A. scoparia, was more than that of chloroquine phosphate.