Researchers learn more about starving parasites to death

Researchers in Australia are working on a technique that will allow them to starve to death parasites that are proving harder to destroy using existing drugs.

The parasite they used in the study was the Leishmania, which is transmitted by the bite of the phlebotomine sandfly. After a period of incubation, the parasite causes huge skin sores, fever, anemia and damages the spleen and liver. It affects 12 million people worldwide and has become more resistant to current drugs.

The scientists exposed the parasite to a large variety of food sources. Using highly sensitive equipment, they tracked how these nutrients were broken down and absorbed into the bodies of the parasites.

"Using this technique we found that Leishmania parasites are very dependent on the use of sugars for energy and growth. This was surprising as previous studies suggested that these parasites may be able to use a range of other nutrients for growth (such as amino acids and fats)," writes lead author Malcolm McConville, a biochemistry and molecular biology professor at the University of Melbourne.

"They are therefore far more picky than we thought and therefore more vulnerable to therapeutic attack," he adds.

The team is hoping to use this food source as a way in to attack the parasite.

"We are interested in seeing whether we can develop new drugs that inhibit parasite sugar metabolism. These drugs would not only prevent parasites from growing and infecting new tissues, but would also make them vulnerable to host immune response," McConville adds.