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Quantification of Intracellular Growth Inside Macrophages is a Fast and Reliable Method for Assessing the Virulence of Leishmania Parasites
Published on: March 16, 2018
Effects of a lichen galactomannan and its vanadyl (IV) complex on peritoneal macrophages and leishmanicidal activity
Guilhermina R Noleto1, Ana Lucia R Mercê, Marcello Iacomini
1Departamento de Bioquímica, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brasil.
Abstract:
A galactomannan (GMPOLY) isolated from lichen Ramalina celastri was complexed with vanadyl ion (IV;VO) forming the complex GMPOLY-VO. Both GMPOLY and GMPOLY-VO diminished the superoxide anion production by macrophages triggered with PMA, the complex giving rise to this effect at concentrations 100 times lower than GMPOLY. Macrophages treated with GMPOLY enhanced the nitric oxide production (40%), this effect not being observed when interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) or IFN-gamma plus lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were present. No effect on nitric oxide production was observed by treatment of macrophage with GMPOLY-VO. Both GMPOLY and GMPOLY-VO exhibited leishmanicidal effects on the amastigote form of Leishmania amazonesis, but only GMPOLY-VO inhibited the growth of promastigote form.
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