[Therapeutic evaluation of artesunate in experimental Schistosoma mansoni infection]

Mice experimentally infected with Schistosoma mansoni were treated orally with artesunate (Lactab) in a single dose of 300 or 500 mg/kg or over a period of five consecutive days. The animals were sacrificed 7, 30, 60 or 90 days after treatment. Statistically significant differences were found in the distribution and mortality of the worms and in the alterations of the oogram in the treated group when compared to control in all of the tested schemes when the animals were sacrificed 30 days after treatment. Morphological analysis of female worms showed a reduction of ovarian volume and rarefaction of the vitelline follicles. These modifications were more marked after treatment with the higher dose, explaining the alteration of the oogram which reached 100%. However, when the animals were sacrificed 60 or 90 days after treatment, the differences and alterations were smaller, showing that the surviving worms recovered and restarted oviposition.