Antifilarial agents. I. Effects of 4-[(7-chloro-4-quinolyl)amino]-alpha-(mono- and dialkylamino)-o-cresos and related compounds against Litomosoides carinii in gerbils

A controlled trial to assess the effect of quinine, chloroquine, amodiaquine, and artesunate on Loa loa microfilaremia

Onchocerciasis control is currently based on mass ivermectin treatment. Unfortunately, this drug can induce serious adverse events (SAEs) in persons with high levels of Loa loa microfilaremia (> 30,000 microfilaria/mL). A means of preventing SAEs would be to treat at risk populations with a drug that would progressively reduce the microfilarial loads before administering ivermectin. Antimalarial drugs are a potential solution because they have shown some activity against various filarial species. A controlled trial was conducted to assess the effect of standard doses of quinine, chloroquine, amodiaquine, and artesunate on L. loa microfilaremia. Ninety-eight patients were randomly allocated into five groups (one for each drug and a control group) after stratification on microfilarial load. Loa loa microfilaremia was monitored on days 0, 3, 7, 15, 30, 60, and 90. No significant change in the loads was recorded in any of the treatment groups. A comprehensive review of the effects of antimalarial drugs against filariae is also provided.

Syntheses and antifilarial profile of 7-chloro-4-(substituted amino) quinolines: a new class of antifilarial agents

The syntheses of 7-chloro-4-(substituted amino) quinolines (2-22) and their antifilarial activities are delineated. Some of the screened compounds have shown promising filarial response and sterilization effect on female Acanthocheilonema viteae in rodents.

Preliminary screening of antifilarial activity of levamisole and amodiaquine on Wuchereria bancrofti

A single dose of levamisole of 3 mg/kg had a marked microfilaricidal effect in some persons harbouring Wuchereria bancrofti, but there was considerable variation in the response. In some cases blood examinations for microfilariae remained negative or at a low level for several months. Persons with high pretreatment microfilaraemias responded less to therapy than did those with low counts. The main side-reaction to levamisole was fever, which began six to eight hours after treatment. Combined DEC-levamisole therapy appears to have no advantage over the use of DEC alone. Amodiaquine in a total dose of 40 mg/kg appears to be macrofilaricidal, but because of the slight possibility of blood dyscrasias, mass chemotherapy with this dosage could not be recommended. Some amodiaquine congeners shown to be effective in experimental infections against adult filarial worms may prove to have a higher chemotherapeutic index than amodiaquine against W. bancrofti in man.