Natural Bioactive Compounds against Schistosoma haematobium and Schistosoma mansoni

Aim: This documentary review aimed to make a synthesis of bioactive plants or natural compounds on schistosomes. We carried out a review from 2000 to 2022, oriented towards the plants in order to search natural compounds bioactive on schistosomes which can be a great contribution for new drugs discovering.

Terms such as “schistosomiasis and medicinal plants”, “natural anti-schistosome compounds”, “phytochemical screening”, “bioactive compounds on schistosomes” were used for the online literature search through the following sites: PubMed; Google Scholar; ScienceDirect and Hinari.

Results: There are many plants already used for the traditional treatment of schistosomiasis. This review found nearly 72 families of plants belonging to 228 botanical species have been listed. Some of these have been studied in vitro / in vivo and preliminary results have shown their schistosomicidal properties. Moreover, the results of qualitative phytochemical screening and toxicity testing of these natural compounds provide hope for new drug discoveries.

Conclusion: Even if plants efficacy is proven, we need more in-depth investigations to determine their chemical components in order to minimize the undesirable effects and to guarantee their safety by assessing their toxicity.