Skip to content
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
agricultural and biological sciences
Efficacy of 5-week doxycycline treatment on adult Onchocerca volvulus
Parasitology Research, Volume 104, No. 2, Year 2009
Notification
URL copied to clipboard!
Description
The effects of 5-week doxycycline treatment on the depletion of Wolbachia endobacteria from Onchocerca volvulus, on the interruption of embryogenesis and on microfilariae production, and with regard to macrofilaricidal activity were studied. In 2003, in an endemic area in Ghana, 22 onchocerciasis patients received 100 mg/day doxycycline for 5 weeks. Two years after the start of the study, 20 treated and ten untreated patients were nodulectomized and skin microfilariae were counted. The onchocercomas were examined by immunohistology for the presence of Wolbachia, embryogenesis, and vitality of adult filariae. The latter two parameters were further assessed by alternating logistic regression analysis, taking into account the dependency of worms and nodules in patients. Doxycycline resulted in depletion of Wolbachia and in complete interruption of embryogenesis in all worms that were assumed to have been present during treatment. In the treated patients, only 51% of the female worms were alive, compared to 84% in the untreated patients, indicating a moderate but distinct macrofilaricidal activity of doxycycline at this dose. It is concluded that, in areas with ongoing transmission, doxycycline cannot replace regular ivermectin mass treatment because new infections would require repeated rounds of doxycycline. However, doxycycline can be used for the treatment of individuals outside transmission areas, in foci where ivermectin resistance may occur, and in countries where onchocerciasis and loiasis are co-endemic. © 2008 The Author(s).
Authors & Co-Authors
Hoerauf, Achim M.
Unknown Affiliation
Specht, Sabine
Unknown Affiliation
Marfo-Debrekyei, Yeboah
Unknown Affiliation
Büttner, Marcelle
Unknown Affiliation
Debrah, Yaw Alex
Unknown Affiliation
Mand, Sabine
Unknown Affiliation
Batsa, Linda
Unknown Affiliation
Brattig, N. W.
Unknown Affiliation
Konadu, Peter
Unknown Affiliation
Bandi, C.
Unknown Affiliation
Fimmers, Rolf
Unknown Affiliation
Adjei, Ohene
Unknown Affiliation
Büttner, Dietrich W.
Unknown Affiliation
Statistics
Citations: 96
Authors: 13
Affiliations: 7
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1007/s00436-008-1217-8
ISSN:
09320113
Research Areas
Infectious Diseases
Study Approach
Quantitative
Study Locations
Ghana
Participants Gender
Female