A review of natural products with antileishmanial activity

Infections caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania are a major worldwide health problem, with high endemicity in developing countries. The incidence of the disease has increased since the emergence of AIDS. In the absence of a vaccine, there is an urgent need for effective drugs to replace/supplement those in current use. The plant kingdom is undoubtedly valuable as a source of new medicinal agents. The present work constitutes a review of the literature on plant extracts and chemically defined molecules of natural origin showing antileishmanial activity. The review refers to 101 plants, their families, and geographical distribution, the parts utilized, the type of extract and the organism tested. It also includes 288 compounds isolated from higher plants and microorganisms, classified into appropriate chemical groups. Some aspects of recent antileishmanial-activity-directed research on natural products are discussed.