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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Antimicrobials, Resistance and Chemotherapy
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1484805
This article is part of the Research Topic Advancing Strategies to Combat Protozoan Diseases: From Drug Resistance to Innovative Treatments View all 5 articles

Cytotoxic Effects of Ivermectin on Giardia lamblia: Induction of Apoptosis and Cell Cycle Arrest

Provisionally accepted
Florencia N. Barzola Florencia N. Barzola 1Jerónimo Laiolo Jerónimo Laiolo 1,2Camilo Cotelo Camilo Cotelo 1Mariana B. Joray Mariana B. Joray 3Ximena Volpini Ximena Volpini 4Maria RIVERO Maria RIVERO 5Andrea Ropolo Andrea Ropolo 1MARIA C. TOUZ MARIA C. TOUZ 1Constanza Feliziani Constanza Feliziani 1*
  • 1 Instituto de Investigación Médica Mercedes y Martín Ferreyra, INIMEC – Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina., Córdoba, Argentina
  • 2 Catholic University of Córdoba, Córdoba, Cordoba, Argentina
  • 3 Centro de investigación y desarrollo en inmunología y enfermedades infecciosas, CIDIE CONICET-UCC, Universidad Católica de Córdoba., Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
  • 4 CONICET Centre for Research in Clinical Biochemistry and Immunology (CIBICI), Cordoba, Córdoba, Argentina
  • 5 Instituto de Desarrollo Agroindustrial y de la Salud (IDAS-CONCIET), Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto, Ruta 36 Km 601, Rio Cuarto, Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Giardia lamblia is a flagellated protozoan parasite causing giardiasis, a common intestinal infection characterized by symptoms like diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and nausea. The treatments employed to combat this parasitic infection have remained unchanged for the past 40 years, leading to the emergence of resistant strains and prompting the search for new therapeutic agents. In this study, we explore the cytotoxic impact of ivermectin (IVM) on G. lamblia trophozoites and elucidate its underlying mechanisms. Our findings demonstrate that IVM induces dose-dependent cytotoxicity and triggers cell death pathways. We found that IVM treatment generates elevated levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), DNA fragmentation, and arrests of trophozoites in the cell cycle's S phase. Additionally, ultrastructural analysis reveals morphological alterations consistent with apoptosis, such as cytoplasmic vacuolization, chromatin condensation, and tubulin redistribution. Understanding the mechanism of action of IVM highlights its potential as an anti-giardiasis agent and may contribute to developing new therapeutic strategies against giardiasis.

    Keywords: Ivermectin, Parasitic infections, Cytotoxicity, Apoptosis, Necrosis, Anti-giardial Agent

    Received: 22 Aug 2024; Accepted: 17 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Barzola, Laiolo, Cotelo, Joray, Volpini, RIVERO, Ropolo, TOUZ and Feliziani. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Constanza Feliziani, Instituto de Investigación Médica Mercedes y Martín Ferreyra, INIMEC – Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina., Córdoba, Argentina

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