Substituted dithiocarbamates and related compounds as trichomonacides.

Abstract

Abstract A series of derivatives of dithiocarbamic acid and related compounds have been examined against Trichomonas vaginalis and Trichomonas foetus in vitro and in vivo in the mouse and the rat. The most active compound in vitro, sodium dimethyldithiocarbamate, caused a 90 per cent inhibition of growth of T. vaginalis and T. foetus at 0·07 μg./ml. The in vitro activity of the other compounds ranged from 0·17–1·5 μg./ml. There was no direct correlation of in vitro and in vivo activity. In the assay in mice, sodium 4-morpholinecarbodithioate was the most active compound against T. vaginalis. The CD 50 was 3·9 mg./kg. This compound would not cure rats infected intravaginally with T. vaginalis. In vitro there was an area of non-response in the dose-response curve of T. vaginalis to sodium 4-morpholinecarbodithioate and piperidine 1-piperidinecarbodithioate. When mice were infected with T. vaginalis, the infections were completely susceptible to treatment with low doses of sodium 1- pyrrolidinecarbodithioate and bis(dimethylthiocarbamoyl) sulphide, but not higher doses. Both of these phenomena, in vitro and in vivo, may have been due to differences in the solubility of various metal complexes formed by these compounds.