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Bioluminescence Imaging to Detect Late Stage Infection of African Trypanosomiasis
Published on: May 18, 2016
The Long Wait for a New Drug for Human African Trypanosomiasis
Catriona H Baker1, Susan C Welburn2
1The University of Edinburgh, Deanery of Biomedical Sciences, Edinburgh Medical School, College of Medicine & Veterinary Medicine, 1 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK; Orcid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9903-7086.
Abstract:
Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) is responsible for around 3000 reported cases each year. Treatments for HAT are expensive and problematic to administer, and available drugs are old and less than ideal, some with high levels of toxicity that result in debilitating and, in some cases, fatal side effects. Treatment options are limited, with only one drug, eflornithine, introduced in the last 28 years. Here we examine the limitations of current chemotherapeutic approaches to manage HAT, the constraints to new drug development exploring drug failures and new drugs on the horizon, and consider the epidemiological, political, social, and economic factors influencing drug development.
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