Quimioterapia da doença de Chagas: estado da arte e perspectivas no desenvolvimento de novos fármacos Chemotherapy of Chagas' disease: state of the art and perspectives for the development of new drugs

• Main Authors: Luiz C. Dias, Marco A. Dessoy, Jean Jerley N. Silva, Otavio H. Thiemann, Glaucius Oliva, Adriano D. Andricopulo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Química 2009-01-01
• Series: Química Nova
• Subjects: Chagas' disease; enzymes; inhibitors
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0100-40422009000900038

<abstract language="eng">Neglected diseases are a major global cause of illness, long-term disability and death. Chagas' disease is a parasitic infection widely distributed throughout Latin America, with devastating consequences in terms of human morbidity and mortality. The existing drug therapy suffers from a combination of drawbacks including poor efficacy, resistance and serious side effects. In 2009, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the discovery of Chagas' disease, facing the challenges of developing new, safe and effective drugs for the treatment of this disease. This brief review attempts to highlight the state of the art, limitations and perspectives of Chagas' disease drug development.