Biochemical and leucocytic response study of herbal immunomodulators against levamisole in Toxocara canis infected mice

Toxocara canis owns an exceptional ability to withstand host's immune system by encystment of larval stages into host's tissue and thus, paving way for anthelmintic ineffectiveness against the larval stages of the parasite. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of three herbal (methanolic extracts of Hippophae rhamnoides, H. salicifolia and Piper longum) and one allopathic (levamisole) immunomodulators on the migratory behaviour of T. canis larvae in tissues of Swiss albino mice, experimentally infected with T. canis embryonated eggs on day 14 of immunomodulatory medication. On the basis of biochemical and leukocyte observations on days 14 and 28 post infection, H. salicifolia and H. rhamnoides were recorded as superior immunomodulators followed by levamisole and Piper longum in Swiss albino mice.