Estudo da Potencialidade da Lignana Iangambina e da Quitosana no Tratamento da Leishmaniose Experimental em Camundongos Suiços

Abstract

Leishmaniasis are a group of parasitic diseases caused by different species of the genus Leishmania and affect over 12 million people throughout the world. Clinical manifestations may vary from simple cutaneous lesions to visceral leishmaniasis, which may be fatal. Conventional chemotherapy is based on several parenteral injections of pentavalent antimonials, drugs that are considerably toxic and prone to induce parasite resistance. Yangambin is a furofuranic lignan, isolated from the leaves of Ocotea duckei, which presents several pharmacological potentialities. Chitosan, a natural polysaccharide composed of glucosamine and n-acetyl-d-glucosamine, has been demonstrating pharmaceutical properties related to controlled drug release. Taking into account that the search for more effective drugs against Leismania has become necessary, this study aimed to evaluate the antileishmanial activity of yangambin and chitosan, as well as the association of yangambin and chitosan on in vitro and in vivo experimental models. The molecules were tested on: promastigote forms of L. amazonensis and L. chagasi; murine macrophages and epithelial cells of canine kidney (MDCK cells); macrophages infected with L. chagasi; and Swiss mice infected with L. amazonensis. Yangambin presented antipromastigote activity against both Leishmania species, and chitosan against L. chagasi. The association yangambin-chitosan did not interfere with the antipromastigote activity of yangambin. Concerning cytotoxicity on mammalian cells, no cytotoxic activity of yangambin was registered on murine macrophages nor MDCK cells at a 24-hour exposure time. Chitosan was not cytotoxic for macrophages exposed to it for 24 hours, however, it presented significant cytotoxic activity for macrophages at a 48-hour exposure time. Yangambin and chitosan presented antiamastigote activity on murine macrophages infected with L. chagasi at a 48 and 72-hour incubation time. Such activity was independent of nitric oxide (NO) and tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a) production. On the model of Swiss mice infected on the footpad with L. amazonensis, the group treated with the association yangambin-chitosan and the group treated with chitosan presented a significant reduction of the paw lesion size at the eighth week of treatment, as well as a reduced parasite load at the footpad and linfonode. Although the group of animals treated with yangambin did not present reduction of the footpad lesion size, a reduced parasite load was observed at the footpad and linfonode. Thus, it can be concluded that yangambin and chitosan present a potentiality in the therapeutics of leishmaniasis, characterized by antileishmanial activity both in vitro and in vivo.