Anti Leishmanial Activities of Some Antidepressant Drugs and Antifungal Drugs.

Abstract

Leishmanisis is wide range, worldwide, without drug, vaccine, secticide and has not sterile immunity and efforts in this field have not been successful.Leishmaniasis is a complex vectorborne disease caused by different species of Leishmania. It affects at least 12 million people worldwide. Leishmaniasis is commonly associated with poor economic conditions and immune compromised situations like HIV co infection. There is increasing in drug resistance to commonly used therapeutics as well as lack of vaccine program. This leads to a perpetual search for a new drug for leishmaniasis. This review fundamentally deals with some antidepressant drugs, and antifugal drugs showing the anti leishmanial activities. The antidepressant drugs are Imipramine, Sertraline, Ketanserin and Mianserin. Imipramine being a Tri Cyclic Antidepressant (TCA) drug kills Leishmania donovani elevating IL-12/IL-10 ratio. Sertraline belonging to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drugs, removes parasite loads from spleen and liver probably by declining cytoplasmic ATP consumption. Ketanserin is a serotonin receptor (5HT2A/2C) antagonist that kills both amastigotes and promastigotes probably due to inhibition of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase (HMGR). Mianserin belonging to the TCA group of drug, kills both promastigote and amastigote parasites also probably due to the inhibition of HMGR. The present review will give the summarized information about putting some old antidepressant drugs for the treatment of another disease like Leishmania. Many topical antifungals have been available, two important antibiotics: amphotericin B to deal with systemic mycosis and griseofulvin to supplement attack on dermatophtes . A number of antifungal agents have been investigated in a rodent model for their parasiticidal activity against visceral leishmaniasis. These drugs have been administered intravenously both alone, and in conjunction with liposomes. All the compounds tested: griseofulvin, 5-fluorocytosine, and amphotericin B—together with the known antileishmanial drug pentamidine—displayed enhanced therapeutic activity when given in liposomal form. In the case of amphotericin, liposomes composed of hydrogenated lecithin, or containing cholesterol or ergosterol in the membrane, were least toxic to the mammalian host, and had the highest therapeutic capability.