Antitrypanosomal and antileishmanial activities

Abstract

The so-called neglected tropical diseases, which are endemic in 149 tropical and subtropical countries, affect more than 1 billion people annually, including 875 million children in developing economies. These diseases are responsible for over 500,000 deaths per year and are characterized by long-term disability and severe pain. Neglected tropical diseases include Chagas’ disease, human African trypanosomiasis, and leishmaniasis, among others. The current chemotherapeutic treatments are clearly out-of-date and inadequate because of the toxic effects, the generation of resistance, and frequent inefficacy and because the route and long- term schedules of administration are not adapted to the field conditions. Taken these drawbacks into account, the search for active compounds that provide the basis for the development of new therapies capable of generating curing against T. cruzi and Leishmania spp. infections is highly desirable. Natural products are an increasing source of new drugs. In recent decades, the Asteraceae family has been extensively studied due to the large number and variety of active compounds that can be extracted from each species. Among them, sesquiterpene lactones are characteristic phytochemicals within this family. The antiprotozoal activity against Trypanosoma cruzi, Leishmania spp., and Plasmodium spp. has been reported for these compounds, making them interesting leads for future drug design.