Novel Therapeutic Strategies for Chagas` Disease

Abstract

Chagas’ disease, also called American trypanosomiasis, is one of the most neglected parasitic diseases in the world. An estimated 10 million people are infected worldwide, mostly in Latin America where Chagas disease is endemic. More than 25 million people are at risk of the disease. It is estimated that in 2008 Chagas disease killed more than 10,000 people. Its infectious agent is the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi with symptoms progressing from mild swelling to intestinal disease and ultimately heart failure. Currently, 2 antiparasitic drugs are recommended for the treatment of chagasic patients: nifurtimox and benznidazole. However, the effectiveness of both varies according to (i) the phase of the disease (acute and early latent infection), (ii) different parasite isolates, (iii) period of treatment and dosage and (iv) age of patient. Also, their well-known toxicity and limited effect make the search for new drugs imperative. Many trypanocidal compounds have been screened in the past few decades and some promising targets have been reported since the introduction of nifurtimox and benznidazole (1960-1970).