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Drug candidate and target for leishmaniasis

Better treatments are needed for the neglected tropical disease leishmaniasis. The development of a compound that tackles the disease in mice, and the identification of the protein it targets, offer a way forward.
  1. Carolina M. C. Catta-Preta

    1. Carolina M. C. Catta-Preta is in the Department of Biology, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK.

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  2. Jeremy C. Mottram

    1. Jeremy C. Mottram is in the Department of Biology, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK.

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The parasite-mediated disease visceral leishmaniasis is prevalent in the tropics and causes 20,000–40,000 deaths across the globe each year1. The drug treatments currently used for this condition have substantial side effects, are difficult to administer and can result in the evolution of treatment-resistant parasite strains. Writing in Nature, Wyllie et al.2 present studies of a series of related drug-candidate molecules that are being developed for leishmaniasis treatment. They also identify the target of the most promising compound.

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Nature 560, 171-172 (2018)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-05765-y

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