Protocols for the routine screening of drug sensitivity in the human parasite trichomonas vaginalis

Abstract

Trichomonas vaginalis is a sexually transmitted protozoan parasite of humans. Treatment of trichomoniasis is almost completely dependent on the old drug metronidazole and is hampered by resistance. New drug development, like routine screening for drug resistance, has however been hampered by the lack of reliable screening protocols with sufficient throughput. Here we report on two separate in vitro protocols that use fluorescent dyes and allow for standardized drug sensitivity testing on the required scale.