Antileishmanial activity of the Antarctic red algae Iridaea cordata (Gigartinaceae; Rhodophyta)

Author(s)

Rangel, Karen C. ^[1] ; Debonsi, Hosana M. ^[1] ; Clementino, Leandro C. ^[2] ; Graminha, Marcia A. S. ^[2] ; Vilela, Leonardo Z. ^[3] ; Colepicolo, Pio ^[3] ; Gaspar, Lorena R. ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Fac Ciencias Farmaceut Ribeirao Preto, BR-14040903 Ribeirao Preto, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Estadual Paulista, Dept Anal Clin, Fac Ciencias Farmaceut, BR-14800903 Araraquara, SP - Brazil

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Quim, BR-05508000 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYCOLOGY; v. 31, n. 2, p. 825-834, APR 2019.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Leishmaniasis is considered a neglected disease and affects billions around the world, currently presenting few therapeutic options, which makes the development of new antileishmanial drugs urgent. Secondary metabolites from marine and terrestrial organisms are important sources of new chemical entities. Herein, the potential activity of crude extracts and fractions from the Antarctic macroalga Iridaea cordata (Turner) Bory de Saint-Vincent was studied against promastigote and intracellular amastigotes forms of Leishmania amazonensis. The cytotoxicity of the active fractions was evaluated on macrophages and 3T3 BALB/c fibroblasts. The chemical profile of volatile substances was analyzed using the GC-MS technique. The fractions IC-FE (IC50-AMA = 23.6 +/- 3.4 mu g mL(-1); SI > 11) and IC-FF (IC50-AMA = 12.4 +/- 1.2 mu g mL(-1); SI > 24) showed promising activity against amastigotes and higher selectivity to the parasite rather than to the mammalian host cells, when compared to the reference drug amphotericin B (IC50-AMA = 5.9 +/- 0.3 mu g mL(-1); SI = 3.9). Their estimated LD50 in rodents are also higher than that in amphotericin B (LD50 IC-FE = 594.5 +/- 25.87 mg kg(-1); LD50 IC-FE = 580.1 +/- 11.84 mg kg(-1); LD50 amphoter = 172.20 +/- 2.40 mg kg(-1)). The chemical profile of these fractions showed the presence of phthalates, esters, ketones, fatty acids, and carboxylic acids, which might be contributing alone or synergistically to the observed antileishmanial activity. Consequently, I. cordata might be used to identify new antileishmanial compounds. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/03552-5 - Leishmaniasis: from screening to the study of mechanisms of action, a contribution to the discovery of new bioactive molecules
• Grantee: Marcia Aparecida Silva Graminha
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 16/06931-4 - Biodiversity of marine algae and metabolites of economical impact
• Grantee: Pio Colepicolo Neto
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Thematic Grants