Dioscorea hispida (Dennst.) Tuber: Unraveling The Phytochemical Basis for Anthelmintic and Antifungal effects

Tropical diseases are prevalent ailments that manifest in tropical and subtropical regions in 149 countries. Various microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, and worms, are responsible for the onset of tropical diseases. This infectious disease is frequently observed in nations with lower economic resources. The tubers of Dioscorea hispida possess the capacity to demonstrate anthelmintic and antifungal characteristics as a result of the existence of secondary metabolites. The tuber of Dioscorea hispida will undergo extraction followed by liquid-liquid fractionation using n-hexane, ethyl acetate, and ethanol-water solvents. The antifungal activity of the extracts and fractions was evaluated in vitro against Candida albicans and Trichophyton mentagrophytes for antifungal activity, and the anthelmintic activity was evaluated in vitro against Pheretima posthuma during paralysis and death for anthelmintic activity The extract Dioscorea hispida (Dennst) tuber showed good anthelmintic and antifungal efficacy; The phytochemical component in the ethyl acetate fraction had the highest performance at a concentration of 30 g/L with paralysis time of 23.90±2.94 and death time of 34.20±2.31 for anthelmintic, in line with that the ethyl acetate fraction also has antifungal activity which is strong at a minimum inhibitory concentration of 5 g/L with an inhibition zone diameter of 11.00 ± 0.40. The ethyl acetate fraction contains several metabolites, including alkaloids, flavonoids, glycosides, and tannins, which exhibit notable effectiveness as anthelmintics and antifungals.