AUTHOR=Moraes Neto Roberval Nascimento , Setúbal Ruth Flávia Barros , Higino Taciana Mirely Maciel , Brelaz-de-Castro Maria Carolina Accioly , da Silva Luís Cláudio Nascimento , Aliança Amanda Silva dos Santos 

TITLE=Asteraceae Plants as Sources of Compounds Against Leishmaniasis and Chagas Disease

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pharmacology

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2019.00477

DOI=10.3389/fphar.2019.00477

ISSN=1663-9812

ABSTRACT=<p>Leishmaniasis and Chagas disease cause great impact on social and economic aspects of people living in developing countries. The treatments for these diseases are based on the same regimen for over 40 years, thus, there is an urgent need for the development of new drugs. In this scenario, Asteraceae plants (a family widely used in folk medicine worldwide) are emerging as an interesting source for new trypanocidal and leishmanicidal compounds. Herein, we provide a non-exhaustive review about the activity of plant-derived products from Asteraceae with inhibitory action toward <italic>Leishmania</italic> spp. and <italic>T. cruzi</italic>. Special attention was given to those studies aiming the isolation (or identification) of the bioactive compounds. Ferulic acid, rosmarinic acid, and ursolic acid (<italic>Baccharis uncinella</italic> DC.) were efficient to treat experimental leishmaniasis; while deoxymikanolide (<italic>Mikania micrantha</italic>) and (+)-15-hydroxy-labd-7-en-17-al (<italic>Aristeguietia glutinosa</italic> Lam.) showed <italic>in vivo</italic> anti-<italic>T. cruzi</italic> action. It is also important to highlight that several plant-derived products (compounds, essential oils) from <italic>Artemisia</italic> plants have shown high inhibitory potential against <italic>Leishmania</italic> spp., such as artemisinin and its derivatives. In summary, these compounds may help the development of new effective agents against these neglected diseases.</p>