IPB Student Discovered Worm Medicine for Chicken Livestock

Student of Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (FMIPA), Bogor Agricultural University (IPB), Faris Wahyu Purnomo, successfully found antelmintik or often called worm medicine for chicken. This worm medicine is usually used to eradicate or reduce worms in the intestinal lumen or body tissues.

"This research is based on the productivity of poultry that often decreases. Decreasing productivity is caused by the disease that comes from parasitic worms. The chickens attacked by this worm disease will experience disturbed digestive which can lead to the reduced in laying eggs, growth barriers, decreased body weight, the presence of other disease and death, "said Faris.

Some chicken farms usually perform parasitic worm infection control using medicinal treatment. "The problem is that the majority drugs used are imported that have side effects on the chicken and the consumer, so we require a cheap, effective and accessible alternative treatment, without side effects on the chicken and its consumers," he explained.

Faris conveyed that temu ireng was hereditary used by ancestors as worm medicine without scientific evidence, so he curious about the content of temu ireng as anti-worms, especially if applied to the chicken.

Before knowing the content of this specific active compound, Faris had done fundamental in vitro and in vivo research on the role of temu ireng as antelmintik. He then conducted further research on specific active compounds that really affect as anti-worms.

The results of the study showed that the active compound in the form of flavonoids acted as anti-worms. This was evidenced by the results showing that the extract of temu ireng flavonoid fraction has antelmintic activity to the life phase of worm A. galli. The highest antelmintic activity in the egg life phase and the A. galli ivective larvae were present at 15 μg/mL concentrations and the highest antelmintic activity in the life phase of A. galli adult worms was at a concentration of 20 μg/mL.

The results showed that flavonoid compounds found in temu ireng were effectively used for anti-worms treatment, especially A. galli which affect to chicken livestock production. (TK)