ANTIPARASITIC POLYANHYDRIDE NANOPARTICLES

摘要

Filarial parasites Brugia, Wuchereria, Loa Loa and Onchocerca cause over 20 million infections worldwide and pose a significant social and economic burden in endemic areas. The invention provides compositions and methods to treat parasitic infections in animals and plants, and to kill and inhibit the replication of parasites in infected hosts. The methods can include administering to a host in need of treatment an effective antiparasitic amount of a composition comprising biodegradable polyanhydride microparticles or nanoparticles that encapsulate antiparasitic agents, optionally in combination with antibacterial agents. Through co-encapsulation of antiparasitic and antibacterial agents into the particles, the invention provides the ability to effectively kill parasitic helminthes, worms, and flukes, with up to a 40-fold reduction in the amount of drug used. The results described herein demonstrate the effectiveness of the drug carriers to reduce both the course of treatment and the amount of drug needed to treat parasitic infections.

主权项

1. A method to kill a parasite or inhibit the preproduction of parasites comprising:
contacting a parasite with, or administering to the host of a parasite, an effective amount of a composition comprising polyanhydride nanoparticles, wherein the polyanhydride nanoparticles comprise: (a) polyanhydride polymers in the form of a nanoparticle and (b) a combination of two or more different active agents located in the interior of the nanoparticle, wherein the nanoparticle is substantially spherical in shape and has an average diameter of about 100 nm to about 900 nm; wherein the polyanhydride polymers comprise anhydride copolymers of 1,ω-bis(carboxy)(C2-C10)alkane units and 1,ω-bis(carboxyphenoxy)(C2-C10)alkane units; wherein one active agent is an antiparasitic agent and a second active agent is an antibiotic agent; and wherein the nanoparticles degrade by surface erosion in the presence of the parasite over a period of time to release the active agents from the interior of the nanoparticles, thereby killing the parasite or inhibiting the reproduction of the parasite.