scholarly journals Application of Dendrimers for Treating Parasitic Diseases

Pharmaceutics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 343
Author(s):  
Veronica Folliero ◽  
Carla Zannella ◽  
Annalisa Chianese ◽  
Debora Stelitano ◽  
Annalisa Ambrosino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Water Solubility ◽  
Parasitic Infection ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Medical Knowledge ◽  
High Ratio ◽  
Molecular Volume ◽  
Parasitic Infections ◽  
Parasitic Diseases ◽  
Wide Range

Despite advances in medical knowledge, parasitic diseases remain a significant global health burden and their pharmacological treatment is often hampered by drug toxicity. Therefore, drug delivery systems may provide useful advantages when used in combination with conventional therapeutic compounds. Dendrimers are three-dimensional polymeric structures, characterized by a central core, branches and terminal functional groups. These nanostructures are known for their defined structure, great water solubility, biocompatibility and high encapsulation ability against a wide range of molecules. Furthermore, the high ratio between terminal groups and molecular volume render them a hopeful vector for drug delivery. These nanostructures offer several advantages compared to conventional drugs for the treatment of parasitic infection. Dendrimers deliver drugs to target sites with reduced dosage, solving side effects that occur with accepted marketed drugs. In recent years, extensive progress has been made towards the use of dendrimers for therapeutic, prophylactic and diagnostic purposes for the management of parasitic infections. The present review highlights the potential of several dendrimers in the management of parasitic diseases.

scholarly journals Application of Dendrimers for the Treatment of Infectious Diseases

Molecules ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (9) ◽  
pp. 2205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zandile Mhlwatika ◽  
Blessing Aderibigbe
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Drug Resistance ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Water Solubility ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Parasitic Infections ◽  
Release Mechanism ◽  
Macromolecular Network ◽  
And Control ◽  
Drug Encapsulation Efficiency

Dendrimers are drug delivery systems that are characterized by a three-dimensional, star-shaped, branched macromolecular network. They possess ideal properties such as low polydispersity index, biocompatibility and good water solubility. They are made up of the interior and the exterior layers. The exterior layer consists of functional groups that are useful for conjugation of drugs and targeting moieties. The interior layer exhibits improved drug encapsulation efficiency, reduced drug toxicity, and controlled release mechanisms. These unique properties make them useful for drug delivery. Dendrimers have attracted considerable attention as drug delivery system for the treatment of infectious diseases. The treatment of infectious diseases is hampered severely by drug resistance. Several properties of dendrimers such as their ability to overcome drug resistance, toxicity and control the release mechanism of the encapsulated drugs make them ideal systems for the treatment of infectious disease. The aim of this review is to discuss the potentials of dendrimers for the treatment of viral and parasitic infections.

Human nutrition needs and parasitic infections

Parasitology ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 107 (S1) ◽  
pp. S7-S18 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. C. Nesheim
Keyword(s):  
Parasitic Infection ◽  
Infectious Agent ◽  
Nutrient Utilization ◽  
Human Nutrition ◽  
Parasitic Infections ◽  
Parasitic Diseases ◽  
Parasitic Disease ◽  
Nutritional Needs

The series of articles that follow in this volume deals with specific aspects of how parasites might influence nutrient utilization by their human hosts. To put these aspects of parasitic disease in context, this contribution is intended to provide an overview of human nutritional needs and to introduce concepts of how nutritional consequences of parasitic infection might be viewed. Although parasitic diseases are often considered to be those caused by protozoa and helminths, the principles considered here can be applied to any infectious agent, including bacteria and viruses.

scholarly journals Using COSMOtherm to predict physicochemical properties of poly- and perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs)

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhanyun Wang ◽  
Matthew MacLeod ◽  
Ian T. Cousins ◽  
Martin Scheringer ◽  
Konrad Hungerbühler
Keyword(s):  
Physicochemical Properties ◽  
Chain Length ◽  
Functional Group ◽  
Water Solubility ◽  
Consumer Products ◽  
Molecular Volume ◽  
Environmental Distribution ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Perfluorinated Alkyl Substances ◽  
Insight Into

Environmental contextPoly- and perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs) include a wide range of individual compounds that are used in many consumer products, but only a few physicochemical property data are available for these chemicals. Here we provide estimates of physicochemical properties (vapour pressure, water solubility, etc.) of 130 individual PFASs derived with a quantum-chemical model. Our results provide insight into the effect of molecular structure on the properties of PFASs and a basis for estimating the environmental partitioning and fate of PFASs. AbstractRecently, there has been concern about the presence of poly- and perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs) in the environment, biota and humans. However, lack of physicochemical data has limited the application of environmental fate models to understand the environmental distribution and ultimate fate of PFASs. We employ the COSMOtherm model to estimate physicochemical properties for 130 individual PFASs, namely perfluoroalkyl acids (including branched isomers for C4–C8 perfluorocarboxylic acids), their precursors and some important intermediates. The estimated physicochemical properties are interpreted using structure-property relationships and rationalised with insight into molecular interactions. Within a homologous series of linear PFASs with the same functional group, both air–water and octanol–water partition coefficient increase with increasing perfluorinated chain length, likely due to increasing molecular volume. For PFASs with the same perfluorinated chain length but different functional groups, the ability of the functional group to form hydrogen bonds strongly influences the chemicals’ partitioning behaviour. The partitioning behaviour of all theoretically possible branched isomers can vary considerably; however, the predominant isopropyl and monomethyl branched isomers in technical mixtures have similar properties as their linear counterparts (differences below 0.5log units). Our property estimates provide a basis for further environmental modelling, but with some caveats and limitations.

scholarly journals Gold nanoparticles for diagnosis and therapy of oncological diseases

2018 ◽  
pp. 79-85
Author(s):  
P.B. Kurapov ◽  
E.Yu. Bakhtenko
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Gold Nanoparticles ◽  
Targeted Drug Delivery ◽  
High Ratio ◽  
Contrast Enhanced ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Diagnostic Agents ◽  
Oncological Diseases ◽  
Targeted Drug

Due to chemical stability, low toxicity, and relative simplicity of synthesis/modification techniques, gold nanoparticles (NP) enjoy a wide range of biomedical applications, including in vitro diagnostics, targeted drug delivery, contrast-enhanced radiation therapy, and photothermal therapy. The high ratio of the gold NP surface area to their volume facilitates design of complex nanoplatforms for various therapeutic and diagnostic purposes. Unique electrical and optical properties of gold NP known as surface plasmon resonance assist medical diagnosis. In this work we look at the basic methods for gold NP synthesis and modification, including the so-called green chemistry, talk about the pharmacological aspects of their application and highlight their potential as diagnostic agents. We believe that due to their unique properties, gold-based nanoplatforms for targeted drug delivery and theranostics have indisputable advantages over other nanoparticles.

scholarly journals Prevalence of Intestinal Parasitic Infection among Food Handlers in Northwest Iran

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Davoud Balarak ◽  
Mohammad Jafari Modrek ◽  
Edris Bazrafshan ◽  
Hossein Ansari ◽  
Ferdos Kord Mostafapour
Keyword(s):  
Intestinal Parasites ◽  
Parasitic Infection ◽  
Parasitic Infections ◽  
Parasitic Diseases ◽  
Food Handlers ◽  
Intestinal Parasitic Infections ◽  
Health Card ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
To Receive ◽  
The City

Parasitic diseases are among the most important infectious diseases and pose health problems in many countries, most especially in developing countries. Workers at food centers could transmit parasitic infections in the absence of sanitation. This is a descriptive study conducted to determine the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections in food clerks in the city of Tabriz in 2014. Data was recorded in the offices of the health center for all food handlers who were referred to the laboratory for demographic and stool tests to receive the health card. Parasitic infection was observed in 172 cases (3.73%) of 4612 samples. A total of 156 positive samples (90.69%) were related to protozoa and 16 (9.3%) were related to helminthes. Most of the parasitic infections were related toGiardiaandEntamoeba coliand the lowest infection was related toH. nana. Also, there was a significant relationship between level of education and parasitic infection rate (P=0.0044). But there was no significant difference between the type of infection and amount of intestinal parasites. The results show that the prevalence of intestinal parasites, especially pathogenic protozoa, is common in some food handlers. Therefore, more sanitary controls are required and increasing of education will play a crucial role in improving the health of these people.

scholarly journals Structural genomics applied to the rust fungus Melampsora larici-populina reveals two candidate effector proteins adopting cystine knot and NTF2-like protein folds

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karine de Guillen ◽  
Cécile Lorrain ◽  
Pascale Tsan ◽  
Philippe Barthe ◽  
Benjamin Petre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Pathogens ◽  
Sequence Similarity ◽  
Rust Fungus ◽  
Parasitic Infection ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Small Proteins ◽  
Wide Range

AbstractRust fungi are plant pathogens that secrete an arsenal of effector proteins interfering with plant functions and promoting parasitic infection. Effectors are often species-specific, evolve rapidly, and display low sequence similarities with known proteins. How rust fungal effectors function in host cells remains elusive, and biochemical and structural approaches have been scarcely used to tackle this question. In this study, we produced recombinant proteins of eleven candidate effectors of the leaf rust fungus Melampsora larici-populina in Escherichia coli. We successfully purified and solved the three-dimensional structure of two proteins, MLP124266 and MLP124017, using NMR spectroscopy. Although both MLP124266 and MLP124017 show no sequence similarity with known proteins, they exhibit structural similarities to knottins, which are disulfide-rich small proteins characterized by intricate disulfide bridges, and to nuclear transport factor 2-like proteins, which are molecular containers involved in a wide range of functions, respectively. Interestingly, such structural folds have not been reported so far in pathogen effectors, indicating that MLP124266 and MLP124017 may bear novel functions related to pathogenicity. Our findings show that sequence-unrelated effectors can adopt folds similar to known proteins, and encourage the use of biochemical and structural approaches to functionally characterize effector candidates.

Recent Advances in the Synthetic Chemistry of Bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane

Synlett ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (01) ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junichiro Kanazawa ◽  
Masanobu Uchiyama
Keyword(s):  
Water Solubility ◽  
Chemical Space ◽  
Direct Synthesis ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
High Water ◽  
Synthetic Chemistry ◽  
Drug Candidates ◽  
Recent Advances ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Phenyl Rings

Utilization of three-dimensional cyclic scaffolds is important in modern drug discovery, both to provide greater opportunities for optimizing drug candidates and to expand the available chemical space of drugs. Among these scaffolds, bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane (BCP) is a high-value bioisostere for 1,4-disubstituted phenyl rings, internal alkynes, and the tert-butyl group, generally offering high passive permeability, high water solubility, and improved metabolic stability. However, the lack of methods for functionalizing BCP remains a significant challenge, and in particular, a versatile strategy for synthesizing a wide range of unsymmetrically 1,3-difunctionalized BCP derivatives has been lacking. In this account, we review recent advances in the synthetic chemistry of BCP, focusing especially on our recently developed radical multicomponent carboamination of [1.1.1]propellane.1 Introduction2 Overview of the Synthetic Chemistry of [1.1.1]Propellane, the Most Promising Precursor of Bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane3 Recent Advances in the Synthetic Chemistry of Unsymmetrically 1,3-Disubstituted Bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane Derivatives4 Radical Multicomponent Carboamination of [1.1.1]Propellane Permits Direct Synthesis of 3-Substituted Bicyclo[1.1.1]pent-1-ylamine Derivatives5 Conclusion

scholarly journals Hydrogels for the Delivery of Plant-Derived (Poly)Phenols

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (14) ◽  
pp. 3254
Author(s):  
Nicola Micale ◽  
Andrea Citarella ◽  
Maria Sofia Molonia ◽  
Antonio Speciale ◽  
Francesco Cimino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Solubility ◽  
Biological Fluids ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Biological Properties ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Polymeric Networks ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Swelling Capacity ◽  
Polymeric Component ◽  
External Stimuli

This review deals with hydrogels as soft and biocompatible vehicles for the delivery of plant-derived (poly)phenols, compounds with low general toxicity and an extraordinary and partially unexplored wide range of biological properties, whose use presents some major issues due to their poor bioavailability and water solubility. Hydrogels are composed of polymeric networks which are able to absorb large amounts of water or biological fluids while retaining their three-dimensional structure. Apart from this primary swelling capacity, hydrogels may be easily tailored in their properties according to the chemical structure of the polymeric component in order to obtain smart delivery systems that can be responsive to various internal/external stimuli. The functionalization of the polymeric component of hydrogels may also be widely exploited to facilitate the incorporation of bioactive compounds with different physicochemical properties into the system. Several prototype hydrogel systems have been designed for effective polyphenol delivery and potential employment in the treatment of human diseases. Therefore, the inherent features of hydrogels have been the focus of considerable research efforts over the past few decades. Herein, we review the most recent advances in (poly)phenol-loaded hydrogels by analyzing them primarily from the therapeutic perspective and highlighting the innovative aspects in terms of design and chemistry.

scholarly journals Prevalence of gastro-intestinal parasitic infections of cats and efficacy of antiparasitics against these infections in Mymensingh sadar, Bangladesh

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
B. H. Mehedi ◽  
A. Nahar ◽  
A. K. M. A. Rahman ◽  
M. A. Ehsan
Keyword(s):  
Helminth Infection ◽  
Parasitic Infection ◽  
Gastrointestinal Parasites ◽  
Parasitic Infections ◽  
Parasitic Diseases ◽  
Toxocara Cati ◽  
Intestinal Parasitic Infections ◽  
Protozoal Infection ◽  
Adult Cat ◽  
Human Infections

Background: Gastro-intestinal parasitic infections in cats is a major concern for public health as they have zoonotic importance. The present research was conducted to determine the prevalence of gastro-intestinal parasitic infection in cats in different areas of Mymensingh Sadar between December, 2018 to May, 2019. Methods: The fecal samples were examined by simple sedimentation and stoll’s ova counting method for detection of eggs/cysts/oocysts of parasites. The efficacy of antiparasitics against the parasitic infections in cats was evaluated. Results: The overall prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites was 62.9% (39/62) and the mixed parasitic infection was 20.9% (13/62). The prevalence of Toxocara cati and Ancylostoma tubaeforme infections were 17.7% and 6.5%, respectively. The prevalence of Taenia pisiformis infection was 3.22%. However, the prevalence of Isospora felis, Toxoplasma gondii and Balantidium coli infections were 4.8%, 3.2% and 6.5%. The prevalence of infection was significantly (P<0.008) higher in kitten than that in adult cat. The efficacy of albendazole, fenbendazole against single helminth infection was 100%. However, the efficacy of the drug was reduced against mixed helminth infection. The efficacy of metronidazole, pyrimithamine plus sulfadoxine was 100% against single protozoa infection but the efficacy of the drug was reduced against mixed protozoal infection. Conclusions: Kittens should be dewormed with effective anthelmintics as they are more vulnerable to parasitic diseases. The T. cati, A. tubaeforme, T. gondii prevalent in cats are zoonotic and owners awareness need to be increased to prevent human infections.

scholarly journals Antifungal and Antiparasitic Drug Delivery

Pharmaceutics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 324
Author(s):  
Juan José Torrado ◽  
Dolores R. Serrano ◽  
Javier Capilla
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Drug Resistance ◽  
Water Solubility ◽  
Parasitic Diseases ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Administration Routes ◽  
Antiparasitic Drug ◽  
Delivery Strategies ◽  
Antiparasitic Drugs

Fungal and parasitic diseases affect more than a billion people across the globe, one-sixth of the world’s population, mostly located in developing countries. The lack of effective and safer treatments combined with a deficient diagnosis lead to serious chronic illness or even death. There is a mismatch between the rate of drug resistance and the development of new medicines. Formulation of antifungal and antiparasitic drugs adapted to different administration routes is challenging, bearing in mind their poor water solubility, which limits their bioavailability and efficacy. Hence, there is an unmet clinical need to develop vaccines and novel formulations and drug delivery strategies that can improve the bioavailability and therapeutic effect by enhancing their dissolution, increasing their chemical potency, stabilising the drug and targeting high concentration of drug to the infection sites. This Editorial regards the ten research contributions presented in the Special Issue “Antifungal and Antiparasitic Drug Delivery”.

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