Modulation of the antioxidant defence in different developmental stages of Schistosoma mansoni by praziquantel and artemether.

Modulation of the antioxidant defence in different developmental stages of Schistosoma mansoni by praziquantel and artemether. Br J Biomed Sci. 2007 Jan;64(4):168-174 Authors: El-Bassiouni EA, Helmy MH, Saad EI, Kamel EN, Abdel-Meguid E, Hussein HSE Abstract Human schistosomiasis is a chronic and debilitating parasitic disease caused by parasitic trematode worms (schistosomes). Praziquantel (PZQ) is the drug of choice as it is active against all Schistosoma species, can be administered easily, has high cure and egg reduction rates, with no or only mild side effects. Rapid re-infection following treatment and the concerns about PZQ resistance has led to the search for new drugs to treat schistosomiasis. Significant progress has been made with artemisinin derivatives (e.g., artemether [ART]) that are used for chemoprophylaxis. This present study aims to look at the effects of ART and PZQ on the antioxidant defence of immature (three-week-old) and mature (six-week-old) stages of S. mansoni. The possible development of time- or concentration-dependent changes in oxidative stress is assessed by incubation with different sublethal drug concentrations (50, 75, 100 ng/mL for both ART and PZQ) and different time periods (one and three hours). The results indicated a time- and concentration-dependent depletion of glutathione (GSH), which was greater in the immature worms after incubation with ART. On addition of ART to the incubation medium of...
Source: British Journal of Biomedical Science - Category: Laboratory Medicine Tags: Br J Biomed Sci Source Type: research