Clofazimine Inhibits the Growth of Babesia and Theileria Parasites In Vitro and In Vivo

Abstract

ABSTRACT The present study evaluated the growth-inhibitory effects of clofazimine, currently used for treating leprosy, against Babesia bovis , B. bigemina , B. caballi , and Theileria equi in in vitro culture and against Babesia microti in mice. The 50% inhibitory concentrations (IC 50 s) of clofazimine against the in vitro growth of B. bovis , B. bigemina , B. caballi , and T. equi were 4.5, 3, 4.3, and 0.29 μM, respectively. In mice infected with B. microti , treatment with 20 mg/kg of body weight of clofazimine administered orally resulted in a significantly lower peak parasitemia (5.3%) than that in the control group (45.9%), which was comparable to the subcutaneous administration of 25 mg/kg diminazene aceturate, the most widely used treatment for animal piroplasmosis. Although slight anemia was observed in both clofazimine- and diminazene aceturate-treated infected mice, the level and duration of anemia were lower and shorter, respectively, than those in untreated infected mice. Using blood transfusions and PCR, we also examined whether clofazimine completely killed B. microti . On day 40 postinfection, when blood analysis was performed, parasites were not found in blood smears; however, the DNA of B. microti was detected in the blood of clofazimine-treated animals and in several tissues of clofazimine- and diminazene aceturate-treated mice by PCR. The growth of parasites was observed in mice after blood transfusions from clofazimine-treated mice. In conclusion, clofazimine showed excellent inhibitory effects against Babesia and Theileria in vitro and in vivo , and further study on clofazimine is required for the future development of a novel chemotherapy with high efficacy and safety against animal piroplasmosis and, possibly, human babesiosis.