Abstract
Endosymbiotic bacteria living in plasmodia or worm parasites are required for the homoeostasis of their host and should be excellent targets for chemotherapy of certain parasitic diseases. We show that targeting of Wolbachia spp bacteria in Onchocerca volvulus filariae by doxycycline leads to sterility of adult worms to an extent not seen with drugs used against onchocerciasis, a leading cause of blindness in African countries.
Publication types
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Clinical Trial
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Controlled Clinical Trial
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Letter
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Adolescent
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Adult
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Animals
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Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
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Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use*
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DNA, Bacterial / analysis
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DNA, Helminth / analysis
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Doxycycline / pharmacology
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Doxycycline / therapeutic use*
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Female
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Humans
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Male
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Middle Aged
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Onchocerca volvulus / genetics
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Onchocerca volvulus / microbiology*
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Onchocerciasis / drug therapy*
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Onchocerciasis / microbiology
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Polymerase Chain Reaction
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Symbiosis
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Wolbachia / drug effects*
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Wolbachia / genetics
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Wolbachia / physiology
Substances
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Anti-Bacterial Agents
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DNA, Bacterial
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DNA, Helminth
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Doxycycline