Identify genes that can predict the success of the oral drug against visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil
Identify genes that can predict the success of the oral drug against visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil
Identify genes that can predict the success of the oral drug against visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil
Researchers at the University of York (United Kingdom) have identified genes in a parasite that could help doctors predict the results of pharmacological treatment in patients with visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil.
The finding could lead to a new prognostic test that predicts which patients will respond well to drug treatment and which patients need alternative solutions.
Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease that is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected sand flies. Every year, there are between 50,000 and 90,000 new cases worldwide, which cause fever, weight loss, swelling of the spleen and liver and anemia, and can be fatal if left untreated.
The team, in collaboration with the University of Glasgow (United Kingdom), the Federal University of Espiritu Santo, the Federal University of Piauí and the State University of Montes Claros (Brazil), discovered that the absence of four specific genes in the parasite ' Leishmania infantum 'in Brazil makes the patient less susceptible to an oral medication called miltefosine.
The parasite first came to the country from Europe in the seventeenth century, has mutated and adapted over time, so it is difficult to predict when it will respond to drug treatment. During a previous clinical trial with oral medication, 40 percent of patients relapsed within six months. However, the presence of certain genes in the parasite in India means that, after a month of treatment, the disease can be cured with a lower risk of relapse.
Transmitting insect of human leishmaniasis. (Photo: DICYT)
Juliana Brambilla Carnielli, a researcher at the University of York, points out that "miltefosine is the only oral treatment for leishmaniasis, but due to its low efficacy in treating visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil, this medication is not authorized in the country." This means, he adds, "that Brazilian patients have to rely on intravenous medications, which require medical facilities for their administration."
Therefore, "it is important to investigate what makes oral medication less effective in Brazil than it has been in India, where it has been widely used."
Jeremy Mottram, also from the University of York, notes that "India, Brazil, East Africa and some parts of Europe are affected by this disease to varying degrees, so we need to know more about how the parasite lives in humans and how the parasite reacts to various medications. "
Personalized medicine is the key to improving patient outcomes. "Our research tells us that the parasite will not react in the same way in all cases to a unique treatment for all," explains the expert.
Up to 3,200 patients had the disease in Brazil in just one year and more than 260 patients died, which represents a significant burden of hospital resources, according to information from the University of York collected by DiCYT.
The next stage will be to conduct a new clinical trial in patients from Brazil who have a positive blood test, to check whether performing the prognosis tests at the beginning of the disease and adapting medications can reduce the number of patients who relapse in the disease. (Source: CGP / DICYT)
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SOURCE LINK ERESVIRAL.COM https://www.beviral.online
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