The Therapeutic Efficacy of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles on Acute Toxoplasmosis in BALB/c Mice
-
Kiana Rafei Siahkal
,
Hossein Keshavarz
,
Saeedeh Shojaee
,
Mehdi Mohebali
,
Hojjat Zeraati
,
Sanaz Jafarpour Azami
,
Atefeh Behkar
,
Mahboobeh Salimi
Abstract
Background: Toxoplasma gondii infects nearly one-third of the world's population. Due to the significant side effects of current treatment options, identifying safe and effective therapies seems crucial. Nanoparticles (NPs) are new promising compounds in treating pathogenic organisms. Currently, no research has investigated the effects of zinc oxide NPs (ZnO-NPs) on Toxoplasma parasite. We aimed to investigate the therapeutic efficacy of ZnO-NPs against tachyzoite forms of T. gondii, RH strain in BALB/c mice.
Methods: In an experiment with 35 female BALB/c mice infected with T. gondii tachyzoites, colloidal ZnO-NPs at concentrations of 10, 20, and 50 ppm, as well as a 50 ppm ZnO solution and a control group, were orally administered four hours after inoculation and continued daily until the mices’ death. Survival rates were calculated and tachyzoite counts were evaluated in the peritoneal fluids of infected mice.
Results: The administration of ZnO-NPs resulted in the reduction of tachyzoite counts in infected mice compared to both the ZnO-treated and control group (P<0.001). Intervention with ZnO-NPs significantly increased the survival time compared to the control group (6.2±0.28 days, P-value <0.05), additionally, the highest dose of ZnO-NPs (50 ppm) showed the highest mice survival time (8.7±0.42 days).
Conclusion: ZnO-NPs were effective in decreasing the number of tachyzoites and increasing mice survival time in vivo. Moreover, there were no significant differences in survival time between the untreated control group and the group treated with zinc oxide, suggesting that, bulk ZnO is not significantly effective in comparison with ZnO-NPs.
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21. Gaafar M, Mady R, Diab R, Shalaby TI . Chitosan and silver nanoparticles: promising anti-Toxoplasma agents. Exp Parasitol.2014;143:30-8.
22. GabAllah M, Barakat A, Ahmed N, El-Nadi N. Histopathological and biochemical assessment of the therapeutic effect of gold nanoparticles on experimental chronic toxoplasmosis. PUJ. 2021; 14(2):171-7.
23. El-Kady AM, S Hassan A, Mohamed K, et al. Zinc oxide nanoparticles produced by Zingiber officinale ameliorates acute toxoplasmosis-induced pathological and biochemical alterations and reduced parasite burden in mice model. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2023 ;17(7):e0011447.
24. Saadatmand M, Al-Awsi GRL, Alanazi AD, et al. Green synthesis of zinc nanoparticles using Lavandula angustifolia Vera. Extract by microwave method and its prophylactic effects on Toxoplasma gondii infection. Saudi J Biologic Sci.2021; 28(11):6454-60.
25. Gauthier C, Griffin G. Using animals in research, testing and teaching. Rev Sci Tech .2005; 24(2):735-45.
26. Albus U. Guide for the care and use of laboratory animals. 8th ed. SAGE: Publications Sage UK: London, England;2012.
27. Teimouri A, Modarressi MH, Shojaee S, et al. Detection of Toxoplasma-specific immunoglobulin G in human sera: performance comparison of in house Dot-ELISA with ECLIA and ELISA. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis.2018; 37(8):1421-9.
28. Singh J, Kumar S, Alok A, et al. The potential of green synthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles as nutrient source for plant growth. J Clean Prod.2019; 214:1061-1070.
29. Eghbalnia H. Evalution of cytotoxic effects of zinc oxide nanoparticles on tachyzoites of Toxoplasma gondii RH strain in experimental conditions [Master dissertation].School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences; 2019.
30. Shojaee S, Firouzeh N, Keshavarz H, Azami SJ, Salimi M, Mohebali M. Nanosilver colloid inhibits Toxoplasma gondii tachyzoites and bradyzoites in vitro. Iran J Parasitol. 2019;14(3):362-67.
31. Abou-El-Naga IF, El Kerdany ED, Mady RF, Shalaby TI, Zaytoun EM. The effect of lopinavir/ritonavir and lopinavir/ritonavir loaded PLGA nanoparticles on experimental toxoplasmosis. Parasitol Int. 2017; 66(6):735–747. Epub 2017/08/26.
32. Escalante M, Romarı´s F, Rodrı´guez M, et al. Evaluation of Trichinella spiralis larva group 1 antigens for serodiagnosis of human trichinellosis. J Clin Microbiol. 2004; 42(9):4060–4066. Epub 2004/09/15.
33. Teimouri A, Azami SJ, Keshavarz H, et al. Anti-Toxoplasma activity of various molecular weights and concentrations of chitosan nanoparticles on tachyzoites of RH strain. Int J Nanomedicine.2018;13:1341-51.
34. Delavari M, Dalimi A, Ghaffarifar F, Sadraei J . In vitro study on cytotoxic effects of ZnO nanoparticles on promastigote and amastigote forms of Leishmania major (MRHO/IR/75/ER). Iran J Parasitol. 2014; 9(1):6-13.
35. Najoom S, Fozia F, Ahmad I, et al. Effective Antiplasmodial and Cytotoxic Activities of Synthesized Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Using Rhazya stricta Leaf Extract. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2021; 2021:5586740.
2. Wei HX, Wei SS, Lindsay DS, Peng HJ. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the efficacy of anti-Toxoplasma gondii medicines in humans. PLoS One. 2015; 10(9):e0138204.
3. Soltani S, Foroutan M, Afshari H, Hezarian M, Kahvaz MS. Seroepidemiological evaluation of Toxoplasma gondii immunity among the general population in southwest of Iran. J Parasit Dis.2018; 42(4):636-42.
4. Azami SJ, Teimouri A, Keshavarz H, et al. Curcumin nanoemulsion as a novel chemical for the treatment of acute and chronic toxoplasmosis in mice. Int J Nanomedicine.2018; 13:7363-74.
5. Teimouri A, Goudarzi F, Goudarzi K, et al. Toxoplasma gondii Infection in Immunocompromised Patients in Iran (2013–2022): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Iran J Parasitol. 2022; 17(4):443-57.
6. Hosseini-Safa A, Shojaee S, Salami SA, et al. Development of High Resolution Melting Analysis as a Diagnostic Tool for Molecular Detection of Toxoplasma Infection in Pregnant Women and HIV Positive Cases. Iran J Public Health.2020; 49(10):1983-91.
7. Zaki L, Ghaffarifar F, Sharifi Z, Horton J, Sadraei J. Effect of Imiquimod on Tachyzoites of Toxoplasma gondii and Infected Macrophages in vitro and in BALB/c Mice. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2020; 10:387.
8. Teimouri A, Mohtasebi S, Kazemirad E, Keshavarz H. Role of Toxoplasma gondii IgG avidity testing in discriminating between acute and chronic toxoplasmosis in pregnancy. J Clin Microbiol.2020; 58(9):e00505-20.
9. Ali-Heydari S, Keshavarz H, Shojaee S, Mohebali M . Diagnosis of antigenic markers of acute toxoplasmosis by IgG avidity immunoblotting. Parasite.2013; 20:18.
10. Ahmadpour E, Ebrahimzadeh MA, Sharif M, et al. Anti-Toxoplasma activities of Zea mays and Eryngium caucasicum extracts, in vitro and in vivo. J Pharmacopuncture.2019; 22(3):154-159.
11. Montazeri M, Sharif M, Sarvi S, Mehrzadi S, Ahmadpour E, Daryani A. A systematic review of in vitro and in vivo activities of anti-Toxoplasma drugs and compounds (2006–2016). Front Microbiol. 2017; 8:25.
12. Wang D, Xing M, El-Ashram S, et al. Determination of lumefantrine as an effective drug against Toxoplasma gondii infection–in vitro and in vivo study. Parasitology. 2021; 148(1):122-8.
13. Alnomasy SF. In vitro and in vivo anti-Toxoplasma effects of Allium sativum essential oil against Toxoplasma gondii RH strain. Infect Drug Resist. 2021;14: 5057-68.
14. Adeyemi OS, Murata Y, Sugi T, Han Y, Kato K. Nanoparticles show potential to retard bradyzoites in vitro formation of Toxoplasma gondii. Folia Parasitol (Praha).2019; 66:2019.
15. Vargas Hernandez M, Macias Bobadilla I, Guevara Gonzalez RG, et al. Nanoparticles as potential antivirals in agriculture. Agric.2020; 10(10):444.
16. Sharma R, Garg R, Kumari A. A review on biogenic synthesis, applications and toxicity aspects of zinc oxide nanoparticles. EXCLI J. 2020; 19:1325-40.
17. Nikolova MP, Chavali MS. Metal oxide nanoparticles as biomedical materials. Biomimetics (Basel). 2020; 5(2):27.
18. Siddiqi KS, Husen A. Properties of zinc oxide nanoparticles and their activity against microbes. Nano Res Letters.2018; 13(1):1-13.
19. Gandhi PR, Jayaseelan C, Mary RR, Mathivanan D, Suseem S . Acaricidal, pediculicidal and larvicidal activity of synthesized ZnO nanoparticles using Momordica charantia leaf extract against blood feeding parasites. Exp Parasitol. 2017; 181:47-56.
20. Vaishnav J, Subha V, Kirubanandan S, Arulmozhi M, Renganathan S . Green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles by Celosia argentea and its characterization. J Optoelectron Biomed Mater.2017; 9:59-71.
21. Gaafar M, Mady R, Diab R, Shalaby TI . Chitosan and silver nanoparticles: promising anti-Toxoplasma agents. Exp Parasitol.2014;143:30-8.
22. GabAllah M, Barakat A, Ahmed N, El-Nadi N. Histopathological and biochemical assessment of the therapeutic effect of gold nanoparticles on experimental chronic toxoplasmosis. PUJ. 2021; 14(2):171-7.
23. El-Kady AM, S Hassan A, Mohamed K, et al. Zinc oxide nanoparticles produced by Zingiber officinale ameliorates acute toxoplasmosis-induced pathological and biochemical alterations and reduced parasite burden in mice model. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2023 ;17(7):e0011447.
24. Saadatmand M, Al-Awsi GRL, Alanazi AD, et al. Green synthesis of zinc nanoparticles using Lavandula angustifolia Vera. Extract by microwave method and its prophylactic effects on Toxoplasma gondii infection. Saudi J Biologic Sci.2021; 28(11):6454-60.
25. Gauthier C, Griffin G. Using animals in research, testing and teaching. Rev Sci Tech .2005; 24(2):735-45.
26. Albus U. Guide for the care and use of laboratory animals. 8th ed. SAGE: Publications Sage UK: London, England;2012.
27. Teimouri A, Modarressi MH, Shojaee S, et al. Detection of Toxoplasma-specific immunoglobulin G in human sera: performance comparison of in house Dot-ELISA with ECLIA and ELISA. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis.2018; 37(8):1421-9.
28. Singh J, Kumar S, Alok A, et al. The potential of green synthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles as nutrient source for plant growth. J Clean Prod.2019; 214:1061-1070.
29. Eghbalnia H. Evalution of cytotoxic effects of zinc oxide nanoparticles on tachyzoites of Toxoplasma gondii RH strain in experimental conditions [Master dissertation].School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences; 2019.
30. Shojaee S, Firouzeh N, Keshavarz H, Azami SJ, Salimi M, Mohebali M. Nanosilver colloid inhibits Toxoplasma gondii tachyzoites and bradyzoites in vitro. Iran J Parasitol. 2019;14(3):362-67.
31. Abou-El-Naga IF, El Kerdany ED, Mady RF, Shalaby TI, Zaytoun EM. The effect of lopinavir/ritonavir and lopinavir/ritonavir loaded PLGA nanoparticles on experimental toxoplasmosis. Parasitol Int. 2017; 66(6):735–747. Epub 2017/08/26.
32. Escalante M, Romarı´s F, Rodrı´guez M, et al. Evaluation of Trichinella spiralis larva group 1 antigens for serodiagnosis of human trichinellosis. J Clin Microbiol. 2004; 42(9):4060–4066. Epub 2004/09/15.
33. Teimouri A, Azami SJ, Keshavarz H, et al. Anti-Toxoplasma activity of various molecular weights and concentrations of chitosan nanoparticles on tachyzoites of RH strain. Int J Nanomedicine.2018;13:1341-51.
34. Delavari M, Dalimi A, Ghaffarifar F, Sadraei J . In vitro study on cytotoxic effects of ZnO nanoparticles on promastigote and amastigote forms of Leishmania major (MRHO/IR/75/ER). Iran J Parasitol. 2014; 9(1):6-13.
35. Najoom S, Fozia F, Ahmad I, et al. Effective Antiplasmodial and Cytotoxic Activities of Synthesized Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Using Rhazya stricta Leaf Extract. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2021; 2021:5586740.
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 18 No 4 (2023) | |
| Section | Original Article(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/ijpa.v18i4.14259 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Toxoplasma gondii Tachyzoite Zinc oxide nanopar-ticles BALB/c mice | ||
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How to Cite
1.
Rafei Siahkal K, Keshavarz H, Shojaee S, Mohebali M, Zeraati H, Jafarpour Azami S, Behkar A, Salimi M. The Therapeutic Efficacy of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles on Acute Toxoplasmosis in BALB/c Mice. Iran J Parasitol. 2023;18(4):505-513.
