Abstract
Despite advances in medical knowledge, parasitic diseases remain a significant global health burden and their pharmacological treatment is often hampered by drug toxicity. Therefore, drug delivery systems may provide useful advantages when used in combination with conventional therapeutic compounds. Dendrimers are three-dimensional polymeric structures, characterized by a central core, branches and terminal functional groups. These nanostructures are known for their defined structure, great water solubility, biocompatibility and high encapsulation ability against a wide range of molecules. Furthermore, the high ratio between terminal groups and molecular volume render them a hopeful vector for drug delivery. These nanostructures offer several advantages compared to conventional drugs for the treatment of parasitic infection. Dendrimers deliver drugs to target sites with reduced dosage, solving side effects that occur with accepted marketed drugs. In recent years, extensive progress has been made towards the use of dendrimers for therapeutic, prophylactic and diagnostic purposes for the management of parasitic infections. The present review highlights the potential of several dendrimers in the management of parasitic diseases.
Highlights
This review attempted to highlight the potentials of dendrimers as an ideal system for the treatment of parasitic diseases
An in-depth assessment has taken place in recent years and great progress had been made in the field of dendrimers and their application in parasitic diseases
The selective action of dendrimers has been used in the treatment of leishmaniasis and toxoplasmosis to reduce the toxicity associated with amphotericin B
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Diseases caused by parasites are still a serious problem for human health despite the widespread advancement in medical technology. Vaccination is the most advantageous method for the control and management of parasitic infections, chemotherapy is the major available option [12]; therapeutic options are limited due to problems related to efficiency, side effects, increases in drug resistance and high costs. Dendrimers deliver drugs to target sites with a reduced dosage to decline the adverse effects that occur with conventional therapies They solve problems encountered with traditional drugs such as low specificity, fast elimination, and low bioavailability [19]. The current review highlights the biological efficacy of several dendrimers in the management of parasitic diseases
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