Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug Treatment
This review presents the main cell characteristics altered after in vitro incubation of the parasite with commercial drugs used to treat the disease caused by <i>Giardia intestinalis</i>. This important intestinal parasite primarily causes diarrhea in children. Metronidazole and albendaz...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Pathogens |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/12/6/810 |
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| author | Marlene Benchimol Ana Paula Gadelha Wanderley de Souza |
| author_facet | Marlene Benchimol Ana Paula Gadelha Wanderley de Souza |
| author_sort | Marlene Benchimol |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This review presents the main cell characteristics altered after in vitro incubation of the parasite with commercial drugs used to treat the disease caused by <i>Giardia intestinalis</i>. This important intestinal parasite primarily causes diarrhea in children. Metronidazole and albendazole are the primary compounds used in therapy against <i>Giardia intestinalis</i>. However, they provoke significant side effects, and some strains have developed resistance to metronidazole. Benzimidazole carbamates, such as albendazole and mebendazole, have shown the best activity against <i>Giardia</i>. Despite their in vitro efficacy, clinical treatment with benzimidazoles has yielded conflicting results, demonstrating lower cure rates. Recently, nitazoxanide has been suggested as an alternative to these drugs. Therefore, to enhance the quality of chemotherapy against this parasite, it is important to invest in developing other compounds that can interfere with key steps of metabolic pathways or cell structures and organelles. For example, <i>Giardia</i> exhibits a unique cell structure called the ventral disc, which is crucial for host adhesion and pathogenicity. Thus, drugs that can disrupt the adhesion process hold promise for future therapy against <i>Giardia</i>. Additionally, this review discusses new drugs and strategies that can be employed, as well as suggestions for developing novel drugs to control the infection caused by this parasite. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:04:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-63cc0016ecf7415290b38e037a60c1d4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0817 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:04:13Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Pathogens |
| spelling | doaj.art-63cc0016ecf7415290b38e037a60c1d42023-11-18T12:00:15ZengMDPI AGPathogens2076-08172023-06-0112681010.3390/pathogens12060810Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug TreatmentMarlene Benchimol0Ana Paula Gadelha1Wanderley de Souza2BIOTRANS-CAXIAS, Universidade do Grande Rio. UNIGRANRIO, Rio de Janeiro 96200-000, BrazilDiretoria de Metrologia Científica, Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia (INMETRO), Rio de Janeiro 25259-020, BrazilInstituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-901, BrazilThis review presents the main cell characteristics altered after in vitro incubation of the parasite with commercial drugs used to treat the disease caused by <i>Giardia intestinalis</i>. This important intestinal parasite primarily causes diarrhea in children. Metronidazole and albendazole are the primary compounds used in therapy against <i>Giardia intestinalis</i>. However, they provoke significant side effects, and some strains have developed resistance to metronidazole. Benzimidazole carbamates, such as albendazole and mebendazole, have shown the best activity against <i>Giardia</i>. Despite their in vitro efficacy, clinical treatment with benzimidazoles has yielded conflicting results, demonstrating lower cure rates. Recently, nitazoxanide has been suggested as an alternative to these drugs. Therefore, to enhance the quality of chemotherapy against this parasite, it is important to invest in developing other compounds that can interfere with key steps of metabolic pathways or cell structures and organelles. For example, <i>Giardia</i> exhibits a unique cell structure called the ventral disc, which is crucial for host adhesion and pathogenicity. Thus, drugs that can disrupt the adhesion process hold promise for future therapy against <i>Giardia</i>. Additionally, this review discusses new drugs and strategies that can be employed, as well as suggestions for developing novel drugs to control the infection caused by this parasite.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/12/6/810intestinal parasitediarrhea<i>Giardia</i> treatmentchildren’s disease |
| spellingShingle | Marlene Benchimol Ana Paula Gadelha Wanderley de Souza Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug Treatment Pathogens intestinal parasite diarrhea <i>Giardia</i> treatment children’s disease |
| title | Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug Treatment |
| title_full | Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug Treatment |
| title_fullStr | Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug Treatment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug Treatment |
| title_short | Ultrastructural Alterations of the Human Pathogen <i>Giardia intestinalis</i> after Drug Treatment |
| title_sort | ultrastructural alterations of the human pathogen i giardia intestinalis i after drug treatment |
| topic | intestinal parasite diarrhea <i>Giardia</i> treatment children’s disease |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/12/6/810 |
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