Identification of clinically approved small molecules that inhibit growth and affect transcript levels of developmentally regulated genes in the African trypanosome.

ABSTRACT: Trypanosoma brucei are unicellular parasites endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa that cause fatal disease in humans and animals. Infection with these parasites is caused by the bite of the tsetse fly vector, and parasites living extracellularly in the blood of infected animals evade the host immune system through antigenic variation. Existing drugs for Human and Animal African Trypanosomiasis are difficult to administer and can have serious side effects. Resistance to some drugs is also increasing, creating an urgent need for alternative trypanosomiasis therapeutics. We screened a library of 1,585 U.S. or foreign-approved drugs and identified 154 compounds that inhibit trypanosome growth. As all of these compounds have already undergone testing for human toxicity, they represent good candidates

SUBMITTER: Walsh ME 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7094864 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature