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TRICLABENDAZOLE AND ITS TWO MAIN METABOLITES LACK ACTIVITY AGAINST SCHISTOSOMA MANSONI IN THE MOUSE MODEL

Some have claimed that triclabendazole, a safe and efficacious drug for the treatment of fascioliasis, also exhibits antischistosomal properties, but results are conflicting. We assessed the effect of triclabendazole and its two main metabolites against two different strains of Schistosoma mansoni harbored in mice. Low worm burden reductions (18.6–35.9%) were observed in mice infected with an Egyptian strain of S. mansoni and treated with a single dose of 120 mg/kg 3 days before infection or single/double doses of 120–200 mg/kg 7 weeks after infection. Triclabendazole failed to significantly reduce hepatic and intestinal tissue egg loads, and eggs of all developmental stages were observed. Administration of 400 mg/kg of either triclabendazole, triclabendazole sulphone, or triclabendazole sulfphoxide to mice infected with a Liberian strain of S. mansoni resulted in worm burden reductions < 10%. In comparison, high worm burden reductions (82–100%) were observed in S. mansoni–infected mice treated with single oral doses of 400, 500, or 500 mg/kg twice a day praziquantel, regardless of the S. mansoni strain. We conclude that triclabendazole and its main metabolites display weak and inconsistent schistosomicidal activities.

Received January 23, 2006. Accepted for publication April 1, 2006.

Acknowledgments: We thank G. Büscher, Novartis Animal Health, for the donation of triclabendazole, triclabendazole sulphoxide, and triclabendazole sulphone.

Financial support: J.K. (Project PMPDB-10622) and J.U. (Project PPOOB–102883) are grateful to the Swiss National Science Foundation for financial support.

^* Address correspondence to Rashida Barakat, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt. E-mail: Barakat{at}dataxprs.com.eg

Authors’ addresses: Jennifer Keiser, Jacques Chollet, and Jürg Utzinger, Swiss Tropical Institute, PO Box, CH-4002 Basel, Switzerland. Nadia Abou El Ela, Engy El Komy, and Rashida Barakat, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt. Naglaa El Lakkany and Tarek Diab, Theodore Bilharz Research Institute, Giza, Egypt.

Reprint requests: Rashida Barakat, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt. E-mail: Barakat{at}dataxprs.com.eg.

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