Neospora caninum: In vivo and in vitro treatment with artemisone

Monica L. Mazuz, Richard Haynes, Varda Shkap, Leah Fish, Ricardo Wollkomirsky, Benjamin Leibovich, Thea Molad, Igor Savitsky, Jacob Golenser*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

30 Scopus citations

Abstract

Neosporosis caused by Neospora caninum has global economic, clinical, and epidemiological impacts, mainly in the cattle industry. Currently, there is no useful drug for treatment of neosporosis. This publication is the first to describe the significant benefits that artemisone has on Neospora infections both in vitro and in vivo.Artemisone is a new semi-synthetic 10-alkylamino artemisinin that is superior to other artemisinin derivatives in terms of its significantly higher antimalarial activity, its tolerance in vivo, lack of detectable neurotoxic potential, improved in vivo pharmacokinetics and metabolic stability. Low micromolar concentrations of artemisone inhibited in vitro Neospora development. Prophylactic and post-infection treatment profoundly reduced the number of infected cells and parasites per cell. In the in vivo gerbil model, a non-toxic dose prevented typical cerebral symptoms, in most animals. There were no signs of clinical symptoms and brain PCR was negative. Most treated gerbils produced high specific antibody titer and were protected against a challenge. Overall, artemisone could be considered as a future drug for neosporosis.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)99-104
Number of pages6
JournalVeterinary Parasitology
Volume187
Issue number1-2
DOIs
StatePublished - 8 Jun 2012

Keywords

  • Artemisinin
  • Artemisone
  • Gerbil
  • Neospora caninum
  • Treatment

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