Williams Andrew R, Ramsay Aina, Hansen Tina V A, Ropiak Honorata M, Mejer Helena, Nejsum Peter, Mueller-Harvey Irene, Thamsborg Stig M
Department of Veterinary Disease Biology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark.
Chemistry and Biochemistry Laboratory, School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading, Reading RG6 6AT, United Kingdom.
Sci Rep. 2015 Sep 30;5:14791. doi: 10.1038/srep14791.
Cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) has been shown to have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, but effects on parasitic worms of the intestine have not been investigated. Here, extracts of cinnamon bark were shown to have potent in vitro anthelmintic properties against the swine nematode Ascaris suum. Analysis of the extract revealed high concentrations of proanthocyanidins (PAC) and trans-cinnamaldehyde (CA). The PAC were subjected to thiolysis and HPLC-MS analysis which demonstrated that they were exclusively procyanidins, had a mean degree of polymerization of 5.2 and 21% of their inter-flavan-3-ol links were A-type linkages. Purification of the PAC revealed that whilst they had activity against A. suum, most of the potency of the extract derived from CA. Trichuris suis and Oesophagostomum dentatum larvae were similarly susceptible to CA. To test whether CA could reduce A. suum infection in pigs in vivo, CA was administered daily in the diet or as a targeted, encapsulated dose. However, infection was not significantly reduced. It is proposed that the rapid absorption or metabolism of CA in vivo may prevent it from being present in sufficient concentrations in situ to exert efficacy. Therefore, further work should focus on whether formulation of CA can enhance its activity against internal parasites.
肉桂（锡兰肉桂）已被证明具有抗炎和抗菌特性，但对肠道寄生虫的作用尚未得到研究。在此，肉桂树皮提取物被证明对猪线虫猪蛔虫具有强大的体外驱虫特性。对提取物的分析显示含有高浓度的原花青素（PAC）和反式肉桂醛（CA）。对PAC进行硫解和HPLC-MS分析，结果表明它们均为原花青素，平均聚合度为5.2，其黄烷-3-醇间键的21%为A型键。对PAC的纯化显示，虽然它们对猪蛔虫有活性，但提取物的大部分效力源自CA。猪鞭虫和有齿食道口线虫幼虫对CA同样敏感。为了测试CA在体内是否能减少猪的猪蛔虫感染，将CA每日添加到饲料中或作为靶向包封剂量给药。然而，感染并未显著减少。据推测，CA在体内的快速吸收或代谢可能使其无法在原位达到足够的浓度以发挥效力。因此，进一步的工作应集中在CA的制剂是否能增强其对体内寄生虫的活性上。
