Diminazene
Anti-parasite drug with a di-amidine
Diminazene (INN; also known as diminazen) is an anti-infective medication for animals that is sold under a variety of brand names. It is effective against certain protozoa such as Babesia, Trypanosoma, and Cytauxzoon. The drug may also be effective against certain bacteria including Brucella and Streptococcus. Chemically it is a di-amidine and it is formulated as its aceturate salt, diminazene aceturate.
The mechanism is not well understood; it probably inhibits DNA replication, but also has affinity to RNA. The drug is known to change the structure of kinetoplast DNA in the Trypanosoma cruzi parasite, which causes Chagas' disease. In particular, kinetoplasts from parasites exposed to the drug have more densely linked minicircles, leading to the formation of fibers within the networks.
01Side effects
Acute side effects include vomiting, diarrhea, and hypotension (low blood pressure). Diminazen can harm the liver, kidneys and brain, which is potentially life-threatening; camels are especially susceptible to these effects.
02Resistance
Drug resistance, or at least evidence of treatment failure, has been reported in several countries in Africa. For example, the Gibe River Valley in southwest Ethiopia showed universal resistance between July 1989 and February 1993. This likely indicates a permanent loss of function in this area against the tested target, T. congolense isolated from Boran cattle.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Diminazene”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Diminazene.svg by Yikrazuul, Public domain
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