Gustavo Capatti Cassiano | Universidade de Campinas (UNICAMP)
In absence of an effective vaccine, rapid treatment is vital for effective malaria control. However, among the greatest challenges in battling malaria is the recurrent emergence and spread of parasite resistance to antimalarial drugs, highlighting the importance to develop new drugs with novel modes of action. We are applying chemoinformatics approaches towards the discovery of new antiplasmodial drugs. We performed a virtual screening of large compounds databases that allowed us to identify two compounds predicted to have antimalarial activity. Further experimental validation showed that these compounds act in vitro against sensitive e multidrug resistant strains of P. falciparum at nanomolar concentrations. Preliminary results also indicate that these compounds may act against liver and sexual stages of parasite. The discovery of these compounds enables us to move forward towards lead optimization strategies.
Host: Pedro Cravo