Leishmania is a genus of single cell parasitic organisms that are the cause of the leishmaniasis, a disease that can manifest itself as skin disorders or internal infections. These organisms are commonly found in the arid regions of the Middle East, as well as areas in and surrounding Central America and parts of South America, as well as India, and the eastern portion of China. Current medical treatments for leishmaniasis are expensive and have undesirable side effects, leading to large numbers of the infected populations untreated. This can lead to permanent disfigurement and other health issues or even death. For these reasons, newer and safer therapies for leishmaniasis treatments are desired. Using the species Leishmania tarentolae as a model system, previously synthesized vanadium complexes are tested for their anti-leishmanial properties thus potential therapies. These complexes have previously been tested in clinical trials for diabetic patients because of their ability to inhibit tyrosine phosphatase, allowing for more glucose uptake in diabetic persons. Incubation of the Leishmania cells with vanadium complexes and testing the viability of cells will help determine the potential for a new class of therapeutic drugs against this disease affecting fifteen to twenty million people worldwide. Our latest results are presented here.

Incubation of Leishmania tarentolae with vanadium complexes to assess their potential as therapeutic drugs

252nd National Meeting (2016)

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