ANTILEISHMANIAL ACTIVITY OF LICOCHALCONE A IN MICE INFECTED WITH LEISHMANIA-MAJOR AND IN HAMSTERS INFECTED WITH LEISHMANIA-DONOVANI

This study was designed to examine the antileishmanial activity of the oxygenated chalcone licochalcone A in mice acid hamsters infected with Leishmania parasites. Intraperitoneal administration of licochalcone A at doses of 2.5 and 5 mg/kg of body weight per day completely prevented lesion development in BALB/c mice infected with Leishmania major. Treatment of hamsters infected with L. donovani with intraperitoneal administration of licochalcone A at a dose of 20 mg/kg of body weight per day for 6 consecutive days resulted in a >96% reduction of parasite load in the liver and the spleen compared with values for untreated control animals. The [H-3]thymidine uptake hv the parasites isolated from the treated hamsters was only about 1% of that observed in parasites isolated from the controls. Oral administration of licochalcone A at concentrations of 5 to 150 mg/kg of body weight per day for 6 consecutive days resulted in >65 and 85% reductions of L. donovani parasite loads in the liver and the spleen, respectively, compared with those of untreated control hamsters. These data clearly demonstrate that licochalcone A is a promising lead for the development of a new drug against leishmaniases.