There are several reports on various drug combinations
showing their in vitro and in vivo interactions on malaria parasites
[16, 22, 23]. The synergy between andrographolide and
curcumin is interesting in the fight against the emergence of
drug resistance among parasites. Both curcumin and andrographolides
being from the plant sources are already documented
for their antioxidant [24] and anti-inflammatory
properties [25], respectively. This information also generates
scope to explore the possibility of modifying the
molecular structures of both the plant-derived compounds
such as andrographolide and curcumin with the objective
of increasing their specific activity against plasmodial
species. The semisynthetic modification of artemisinin to
artesunate, artemether, and DHA has already yielded compounds
with significantly higher activity. The other finding
that deciphers the additiveness of andrographolide with
artesunate, the most potent artemisinin derivative makes
it important in the context that it offers opportunities to
further standardize new ACT- (artemisinin-based combination
therapies-) based formulae as possible antimalarial
combination.