In vitro sensitivity of Plasmodium falciparum to drugs that bind DNA or inhibit its synthesis

The in vitro sensitivity of Plasmodium falciparum to bleomycin, busulfan, camptothecin, CC-1065, cisplatin, daunomycin, distamycin, luzopeptin, mAMSA, mitomycin C, naladixic acid, U71184, VM26, and VP16, or combinations of them was examined. The lethal dose concentration for 50% of parasites for 3 compounds, luzopeptin, CC1065, and U71184, that bind to adenine-thymidine-rich nucleotide sequences, were in the range of 10(-11) M. They were at least 2 orders of magnitude more effective than the other compounds.