Increased metacyclogenesis of antimony-resistant Leishmania donovani clinical lines

Parasitology ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 138 (11) ◽  
pp. 1392-1399 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. OUAKAD ◽  
M. VANAERSCHOT ◽  
S. RIJAL ◽  
S. SUNDAR ◽  
N. SPEYBROECK ◽  
...  

SUMMARYMathematical models predict that the future of epidemics of drug-resistant pathogens depends in part on the competitive fitness of drug-resistant strains. Considering metacyclogenesis (differentiation process essential for infectivity) as a major contributor to the fitness of Leishmania donovani, we tested its relationship with pentavalent antimony (SbV) resistance in clinical lines. Different methods for the assessment of metacyclogenesis were cross-validated: gene expression profiling (META1 and SHERP), morphometry (microscopy and FACS), in vitro infectivity to macrophages and resistance to complement lysis. This was done on a model constituted by 2 pairs of reference strains cloned from a SbV-resistant and -sensitive isolate. We selected the most adequate parameter and extended the analysis of metacyclogenesis diversity to a sample of 20 clinical lines with different in vitro susceptibility to the drug. The capacity of metacyclogenesis, as measured by the complement lysis test, was shown to be significantly higher in SbV-resistant clinical lines of L. donovani than in SbV-sensitive lines. Together with other lines of evidence, it is concluded that L. donovani constitutes a unique example and model of drug-resistant pathogens with traits of increased fitness. These findings raise a fundamental question about the potential risks of selecting more virulent pathogens through massive chemotherapeutic interventions.

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-26
Author(s):  
Kimberly To ◽  
Ruoqiong Cao ◽  
Aram Yegiazaryan ◽  
James Owens ◽  
Kayvan Sasaninia ◽  
...  

Abstract Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb) still remains a devastating infectious disease in the world. There has been a daunting increase in the incidence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) worldwide. T2DM patients are three times more vulnerable to M. tb infection compared to healthy individuals. TB-T2DM coincidence is a challenge for global health control. Despite some progress in the research, M. tb still has unexplored characteristics in successfully evading host defenses. The lengthy duration of treatment, the emergence of multi-drug-resistant strains and extensive-drug-resistant strains of M. tb have made TB treatment very challenging. Previously, we have tested the antimycobacterial effects of everolimus within in vitro granulomas generated from immune cells derived from peripheral blood of healthy subjects. However, the effectiveness of everolimus treatment against mycobacterial infection in individuals with T2DM is unknown. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the combination of in vivo glutathione (GSH) supplementation in individuals with T2DM along with in vitro treatment of isolated immune cells with everolimus against mycobacterial infection has never been tested. Therefore, we postulated that liposomal glutathione (L-GSH) and everolimus would offer great hope for developing adjunctive therapy for mycobacterial infection. L-GSH or placebo was administered to T2DM individuals orally for three months. Study subjects’ blood was drawn pre- and post-L-GSH/or placebo supplementation, where Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells (PBMCs) were isolated from whole blood to conduct in vitro studies with everolimus. We found that in vitro treatment with everolimus, an mTOR (membrane target of rapamycin) inhibitor, significantly reduced intracellular M. bovis BCG infection alone and in conjunction with L-GSH supplementation. Furthermore, we found L-GSH supplementation coupled with in vitro everolimus treatment produced a greater effect in inhibiting the growth of intracellular Mycobacterium bovis BCG, than with the everolimus treatment alone. We also demonstrated the functions of L-GSH along with in vitro everolimus treatment in modulating the levels of cytokines such as IFN-γ, TNF-α, and IL-2 and IL-6, in favor of improving control of the mycobacterial infection. In summary, in vitro everolimus-treatment alone and in combination with oral L-GSH supplementation for three months in individuals with T2DM, was able to increase the levels of T-helper type 1 (Th1) cytokines IFN-γ, TNF-α, and IL-2 as well as enhance the abilities of granulomas from individuals with T2DM to improve control of a mycobacterial infection.


Nanomedicine ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pragya Prasanna ◽  
Prakash Kumar ◽  
Saptarshi Mandal ◽  
Tanvi Payal ◽  
Saurabh Kumar ◽  
...  

Aim: To analyze the efficacy and possible mechanism of action of 7,8-dihydroxyflavone (DHF) and DHF synthesized gold nanoparticles (GNPs) against the parasite Leishmania donovani. Methods: GNPs were synthesized using DHF and characterized by dynamic light scattering, ζ potential, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction. The efficacy of DHF and DHF-GNP were tested against sensitive and drug-resistant parasites. GNP uptake was measured on macrophages by atomic absorption spectroscopy. Results: DHF and DHF-GNP (∼35 nm) were equally effective against sensitive and drug-resistant strains and inhibited the arginase activity of parasites. Increased IFN-γ and reduced IL-12 cytokine response showed a Th1/Th2-mediated cell death in macrophages. Conclusion: The low cytotoxicity and high biological activity of DHF-GNP may be useful for chemotherapy of leishmaniasis.


2004 ◽  
Vol 57 (6) ◽  
pp. 400-402 ◽  
Author(s):  
KAZUHIKO OTOGURO ◽  
AKI ISHIYAMA ◽  
MIYUKI KOBAYASHI ◽  
HITOMI SEKIGUCHI ◽  
TAKASHI IZUHARA ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Manoon Leechawengwongs ◽  
Therdsak Prammananan ◽  
Sarinya Jaitrong ◽  
Pamaree Billamas ◽  
Nampueng Makhao ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT New fluoroquinolones (FQs) have been shown to be more active against drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains than early FQs, such as ofloxacin. Sitafloxacin (STFX) is a new fluoroquinolone with in vitro activity against a broad range of bacteria, including M. tuberculosis. This study aimed to determine the in vitro activity of STFX against all groups of drug-resistant strains, including multidrug-resistant M. tuberculosis (MDR M. tuberculosis), MDR M. tuberculosis with quinolone resistance (pre-XDR), and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) strains. A total of 374 drug-resistant M. tuberculosis strains were tested for drug susceptibility by the conventional proportion method, and 95 strains were randomly submitted for MIC determination using the microplate alamarBlue assay (MABA). The results revealed that all the drug-resistant strains were susceptible to STFX at a critical concentration of 2 μg/ml. Determination of the MIC90s of the strains showed different MIC levels; MDR M. tuberculosis strains had a MIC90 of 0.0625 μg/ml, whereas pre-XDR and XDR M. tuberculosis strains had identical MIC90s of 0.5 μg/ml. Common mutations within the quinolone resistance-determining region (QRDR) of gyrA and/or gyrB did not confer resistance to STFX, except that double mutations of GyrA at Ala90Val and Asp94Ala were found in strains with a MIC of 1.0 μg/ml. The results indicated that STFX had potent in vitro activity against all the groups of drug-resistant M. tuberculosis strains and should be considered a new repurposed drug for treatment of multidrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant TB.


2010 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 208-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoonkyung Park ◽  
Seong-Cheol Park ◽  
Jin-Young Kim ◽  
Jeong Ok Park ◽  
Chang Ho Seo ◽  
...  

2012 ◽  
Vol 56 (7) ◽  
pp. 3475-3480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sovitj Pou ◽  
Rolf W. Winter ◽  
Aaron Nilsen ◽  
Jane Xu Kelly ◽  
Yuexin Li ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTSontochin was the original chloroquine replacement drug, arising from research by Hans Andersag 2 years after chloroquine (known as “resochin” at the time) had been shelved due to the mistaken perception that it was too toxic for human use. We were surprised to find that sontochin, i.e., 3-methyl-chloroquine, retains significant activity against chloroquine-resistant strains ofPlasmodium falciparum in vitro. We prepared derivatives of sontochin, “pharmachins,” with alkyl or aryl substituents at the 3 position and with alterations to the 4-position side chain to enhance activity against drug-resistant strains. Modified with an aryl substituent in the 3 position of the 7-chloro-quinoline ring, Pharmachin 203 (PH-203) exhibits low-nanomolar 50% inhibitory concentrations (IC50s) against drug-sensitive and multidrug-resistant strains andin vivoefficacy against patent infections ofPlasmodium yoeliiin mice that is superior to chloroquine. Our findings suggest that novel 3-position aryl pharmachin derivatives have the potential for use in treating drug resistant malaria.


Author(s):  
Nabanita Kar ◽  
Santanu Ghosh ◽  
Leena Kumari ◽  
Shreyasi Chakraborty ◽  
Tanmoy Bera

Objective: The objective of this work was to screen a number of compounds for their antileishmanial efficacy and cytotoxicity profiling.Methods: Curry leaf oil, cypress oil and spikenard oil were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis. Betulinic acid, spikenard oil, cypress oil and curry leaf oil were evaluated for their in vitro antileishmanial activity against Leishmania donovani AG83 wild-type, sodium stibogluconate resistant (SSG-resistant), paromomycin (PMM-resistant) and GE1 field type strains on axenic and cellular amastigote model and compared the results with standard drugs used to treat leishmaniasis.Results: Betulinic acid showed strong antileishmanial activity against wild-type (SI= 192.8), SSG-resistant (SI= 19.3) and GE1 strains (SI= 100), whereas cypress oil has produced highest antileishmanial activity against PMM-resistant strains (SI= 15.09) among all the tested drugs. The data obtained also revealed that cypress oil had the maximum CC50 value of 452.9 μl among all standard and tested drugs.Conclusion: All tested drugs had antileishmanial property but among them, betulinic acid possess strong antileishmanial activity in case of both wild-type and drug-resistant leishmaniasis.


2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoshio Nakatani ◽  
Helen K. Opel-Reading ◽  
Matthias Merker ◽  
Diana Machado ◽  
Sönke Andres ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT A screening of more than 1,500 drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis revealed evolutionary patterns characteristic of positive selection for three alanine racemase (Alr) mutations. We investigated these mutations using molecular modeling, in vitro MIC testing, as well as direct measurements of enzymatic activity, which demonstrated that these mutations likely confer resistance to d-cycloserine.


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