In Vitro Effects of Pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata) Seed Extracts on Echinococcus granulosus Protoscoleces

Background: Echinococcus granulosus parasite causes a zoonotic disease which is im-portant for public and veterinary health. Since pumpkin seeds (Cucurbita sp.) are used as traditional vermifuge in Iran, they may be a potential herbal anthelmintic. Methods: This study was designed in 2016 to evaluate the in vitro scolicidal effect of Cucurbita moschata seeds form northern part of Iran. Hydroalcoholic and petrole-um ether extracts were prepared by maceration and soxhlet respectively. Both ex-tracts with four different concentrations (100, 10, 1, 0.1 mg/ml) were incubated against protoscoleces in 5, 15, 30 and 60 min. Results: Maximum mortality was 16% with 1% hydroalcoholic extract in 60 min. The highest mortality with organic extract was 4% with 10% concentration in 60 min (P=0.015). Conclusion: Since highest mortality was 16%, the extract did not reach to LD50 (50% mortality). Therefore, the potency of the total extract is not sufficient as po-tential scolicidal drug.