Advances in nanocarriers as drug delivery systems in Chagas disease

International Journal of Nanomedicine Dovepress open access to scientific and medical research International Journal of Nanomedicine downloaded from https://www.dovepress.com/ by 88.198.20.149 on 01-Nov-2019 For personal use only. Open Access Full Text Article Advances in nanocarriers as drug delivery systems in Chagas disease This article was published in the following Dove Press journal: International Journal of Nanomedicine Christian Quijia Quezada 1,2 Clênia S Azevedo 1 Sébastien Charneau 3 Jaime M Santana 1 Marlus Chorilli 2 Marcella B Carneiro 4 Izabela Marques Dourado Bastos 1 1 Pathogen-Host Interface Laboratory, Department of Cell Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Brasilia, Brasília, Brazil; 2Department of Drugs and Medicines, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Araraquara, São Paulo, Brazil; 3 Laboratory of Protein Chemistry and Biochemistry, Department of Cell Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Brasilia, Brasília, Brazil; 4Electron Microscopy Laboratory, Department of Cell Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Brasilia, Brasília, Brazil Abstract: Chagas disease is one of the most important public health problems in Latin America due to its high mortality and morbidity levels. There is no effective treatment for this disease since drugs are usually toxic with low bioavailability. Serious efforts to achieve disease control and eventual eradication have been unsuccessful to date, emphasizing the need for rapid diagnosis, drug development, and a reliable vaccine. Novel systems for drug and vaccine administration based on nanocarriers represent a promising avenue for Chagas disease treatment. Nanoparticulate systems can reduce toxicity, and increase the efficacy and bioavailability of active compounds by prolonging release, and therefore improve the therapeutic index. Moreover, nanoparticles are able to interact with the host’s immune system, modulating the immune response to favour the elimination of pathogenic microorganisms. In addition, new advances in diagnostic assays, such as nanobiosensors, are beneficial in that they enable precise identification of the pathogen. In this review, we provide an overview of the strategies and nanocarrier-based delivery systems for antichagasic agents, such as liposomes, micelles, nanoemulsions, polymeric and non-polymeric nanoparticles. We address recent progress, with a particular focus on the advances of nanovaccines and nanodiagnostics, exploring new perspectives on Chagas disease treatment. Keywords: delivery systems, nanobiosensors, nanodiagnostics, nanoparticle systems, nanovaccine Introduction Correspondence: Izabela Marques Dourado Bastos Departamento de Biologia Celular, Universidade de Brasilia, Brasília 70910900, DF, Brazil Tel +55 613 107 3051 Email Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, is endemic in Latin America, where between five and eight million people are infected. The disease is spreading to non-endemic countries, such as Australia, Canada, Japan, Spain and United States of America (USA).1 It is mainly transmitted by faecal contamination of Reduviidae insects through insect bites or another injury of the skin2 parasite can also be spread by blood transfusion, organ transplantation, congenital contamination, and consumption of contaminated food and drinks.3 The T. cruzi biological cycle is comprised of three fundamental forms: (1) infective trypomastigotes found in mammalian blood and in the hindgut of triatomine bugs as metacyclic forms, (2) epimastigotes, the proliferative form located in the bug’s midgut, and (3) amastigotes that multiply by binary fission inside mammalian host cells, causing disruption and the release of new trypomastigotes into the bloodstream capable of invading any nucleated cell to begin a new reproductive cycle.4 Regarding clinical symptoms, Chagas disease can manifest both an acute phase which is asymptomatic in most cases and a chronic phase that is depicted by digestive and/or cardiac lesions.5 Treatment is based on the nitroheterocyclic compounds benznidazole and 6407 submit your manuscript | www.dovepress.com International Journal of Nanomedicine 2019:14 6407–6424 DovePress © 2019 Quijia Quezada et al. This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/ terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/). By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms (https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php). http://doi.org/10.2147/IJN.S206109 Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) REVIEW International Journal of Nanomedicine downloaded from https://www.dovepress.com/ by 88.198.20.149 on 01-Nov-2019 For personal use only. Quijia Quezada et al nifurtimox. However, in long-term therapy, both of the aforementioned induce serious side effects and cross-resistance. To date, research into the production of Chagas disease vaccines has been conducted. The main difficulties have been finding a protective antigen and generating attenuated parasites that will not trigger pathology in the long-term.6 Therefore, in the absence of vaccines, control measures for Chagas disease remain limited to diagnosis and treatment.5 Nanocarriers has demonstrated important results in terms of increasing the efficacy and decreasing the toxicity of drugs, antigens, and adjuvants currently used against some diseases. The use of nanocarriers against pathogens provides a greater ability to overcome biological barriers, maintenance of drug integrity in biological media, with higher specificity to target cells and tissues together with prolonged drug release in comparison to conventional drugs.7 Moreover, nanodiagnostic systems have been developed to improve the accuracy of sample preparation and detection of infectious pathogens by means of a simple, quick, accurate and inexpensive technique.8 In this review, we provide an overview of synthetic methods, physical characteristics and delivery systems based on nanocarriers for various antitrypanosomal agents, through liposomes, micelles, mesoporous silica nanoparticles, polymeric and non-polymeric nanoparticles (Figure 1). In this context, we highlight new perspectives and innovative Figure 1 Nanomaterials used against Chagas disease. Strategies and application of nanocarrier-based drug delivery systems, such as liposomes, micelles, mesoporous silica nanoparticles, polymeric and non-polymeric nanoparticles to optimize the delivery of antitrypanosomal agents. 6408 Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) submit your manuscript | www.dovepress.com DovePress Dovepress strategies on the treatment of Chag (...truncated)