Abstract

This work aimed at examining the effect of malaria parasites and ascorbic treatments in mice. The relevance of this research derives from the desire to understand the role of ascorbic acid in malaria infection. In this study design, three groups of ten mice each categorized as non-parasitized-non-treated (control), parasitized-non-treated (PnT) and parasitized ascorbic acid treated (P+asT) were used. Results collected and analyzed using adequate statistical software revealed that parasitemia in mice had significant (p < 0.05) increases in erythrocyte fragility, total and indirect bilirubin, total protein and globulin but decreased (P < 0.05) mice packed cell volume (PCV). Plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) significantly (p < 0.05) increased while superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) decreased (p < 0.05). Liver SOD and CAT as well as kidney MDA of parasitized non treated mice were observed to increase (p < 0.05) following Plasmodium berghei infection. Ascorbic acid treatment of parasitized mice was observed to reverse the effects ofP. berghei in mice. The findings suggest ascorbic acid to be critical in the management of malaria parasite infection.

Key words: Plasmodium berghei, ascorbic acid, antioxidants, erythrocyte fragility, oxidative stress.