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In Vitro Activity of Statins against Naegleria fowleri

Aitor Rizo-Liendo1, Ines Sifaoui1,2, María Reyes-Batlle1

  • 1Instituto Universitario de Enfermedades Tropicales y Salud Pública de Canarias, Universidad de La Laguna, Av. Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez S/N, 38203 Tenerife, Spain.

Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland)
|August 11, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Fluvastatin shows promise in combating Naegleria fowleri, the cause of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). This study found fluvastatin effective in eliminating the amoebae in vitro, offering a potential new treatment for this rare but deadly infection.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Drug Discovery

Background:

  • Naegleria fowleri causes primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a rare but increasingly reported fatal infection.
  • Global warming and increased awareness contribute to the rise in PAM cases.
  • Current treatments like amphotericin B and miltefosine have significant toxic side effects.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the in vitro efficacy of statins against Naegleria fowleri.
  • To identify potential novel therapeutic agents for primary amoebic meningoencephalitis.

Main Methods:

  • Testing the in vitro activity of various statins against two strains of Naegleria fowleri.
  • Evaluating the inhibitory effect of statins on 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase, crucial for ergosterol synthesis.

Main Results:

  • Fluvastatin demonstrated the highest efficacy among the tested statins.
  • Fluvastatin successfully eliminated Naegleria fowleri at concentrations ranging from 0.179 ± 0.078 to 1.682 ± 0.775 µM, varying by strain.

Conclusions:

  • Fluvastatin is a potential novel therapeutic agent against Naegleria fowleri.
  • Targeting HMG-CoA reductase with statins offers a promising strategy for treating PAM.
Keywords:
Naegleriaencephalitisfluvastatinstatinstherapeutics

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