15 research outputs found
Usefulness of PCR-based assays to assess drug efficacy in Chagas disease chemotherapy: value and limitations
One major goal of research on Chagas disease is the development of effective chemotherapy to eliminate the infection from individuals who have not yet developed cardiac and/or digestive disease manifestations. Cure evaluation is the more complex aspect of its treatment, often leading to diverse and controversial results. The absence of reliable methods or a diagnostic gold standard to assess etiologic treatment efficacy still constitutes a major challenge. In an effort to develop more sensitive tools, polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based assays were introduced to detect low amounts of Trypanosoma cruzi DNA in blood samples from chagasic patients, thus improving the diagnosis and follow-up evaluation after chemotherapy. In this article, I review the main problems concerning drug efficacy and criteria used for cure estimation in treated chagasic patients, and the work conducted by different groups on developing PCR methodologies to monitor treatment outcome of congenital infections as well as recent and late chronic T. cruzi infections
DEMOCRATIZACIÓN E INCLUSIÓN EN LA UNIVERSIDAD ARGENTINA: SUS ALCANCES DURANTE LOS GOBIERNOS KIRCHNER (2003-2015)
El envilecimiento de las cifras. Una mirada moderna sobre el INDEC y los Operativos Nacionales de Evaluación en la Argentina en el siglo XXI
Ampliaciones y desigualdades en el acceso y egreso de estudiantes a la Educación Superior en la Argentina
Estudo longitudinal e quimioterapia específica em crianças, com doença de Chagas crônica, residentes em área de baixa endemicidade da República Argentina
Benznidazole biotransformation in rat heart microsomal fraction without observable ultrastructural alterations: comparison to Nifurtimox-induced cardiac effects
Benznidazole (Bz) and Nifurtimox (Nfx) have been used to treat Chagas disease. As recent studies have de-monstrated cardiotoxic effects of Nfx, we attempted to determine whether Bz behaves similarly. Bz reached the heart tissue of male rats after intragastric administration. No cytosolic Bz nitroreductases were detected, although microsomal NADPH-dependent Bz nitroreductase activity was observed, and appeared to be mediated by P450 reductase. No ultrastructurally observable deleterious effects of Bz were detected, in contrast to the overt cardiac effects previously reported for Nfx. In conclusion, when these drugs are used in chagasic patients, Bz may pose a lesser risk to heart function than Nfx when any cardiopathy is present