Searching for drugs for Chagas disease, leishmaniasis and schistosomiasis: a review

Chagas disease, leishmaniasis and schistosomiasis are neglected diseases (NDs) and are a considerable global challenge. Despite the huge number of people infected, NDs do not create interest from pharmaceutical companies because the associated revenue is generally low. Most of the research on these diseases has been conducted in academic institutions. The chemotherapeutic armamentarium for NDs is scarce and inefficient and better drugs are needed. Researchers have found some promising potential drug candidates using medicinal chemistry and computational approaches. Most of these compounds are synthetic but some are from natural sources or are semi-synthetic. Drug repurposing or repositioning has also been greatly stimulated for NDs. This review considers some potential drug candidates and provides details of their design, discovery and activity.