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Effect of cyclosporin A on the survival and ultrastructure of Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces in vitro

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 September 2004

A. L. COLEBROOK
Affiliation:
Department of Veterinary Science, University of Melbourne, 250 Princes Highway, Werribee, 3030 Victoria, Australia
D. J. JENKINS
Affiliation:
Department of Veterinary Science, University of Melbourne, 250 Princes Highway, Werribee, 3030 Victoria, Australia
M. K. JONES
Affiliation:
Department of Veterinary Science, University of Melbourne, 250 Princes Highway, Werribee, 3030 Victoria, Australia
L. TATARCZUCH
Affiliation:
Department of Veterinary Science, University of Melbourne, 250 Princes Highway, Werribee, 3030 Victoria, Australia
M. W. LIGHTOWLERS
Affiliation:
Department of Veterinary Science, University of Melbourne, 250 Princes Highway, Werribee, 3030 Victoria, Australia
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Abstract

Surgical treatment of human hydatidsosis involves the use of various scolicidal agents to kill infective Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces that may disseminate into the peritoneal cavity during surgery and potentially re-infect the patient. Currently, no scolicidal agent is completely effective in killing intracystic protoscoleces in humans. Cyclosporin A (CsA) has previously been found to be lethal for E. granulosus protoscoleces in vitro. In this study, we further assessed the effectiveness of CsA as a scolicidal agent by testing the toxic effect of CsA at higher doses over various time-periods. Experiments were performed on activated and unactivated protoscoleces cultured in nutrient medium or sheep hydatid cyst fluid. All activated protoscoleces were killed following culture in 100 μg/ml of CsA for 3 days and 50 or 20 μg/ml for 5 days. The lethal effect of CsA on unactivated protoscoleces varied but reached 100% over 15 days in culture with 100 or 50 μg/ml of CsA. Pulse treatment of protoscoleces with 50, 20 or 10 μg/ml of CsA for 5 min or 72 h killed all parasites by day 10 and day 5 respectively. Untreated protoscoleces remained greater than 95% viable for the duration of experiments. Changes in protoscolex ultrastructure induced by treatment with 10 μg/ml of CsA over 10 days in in vitro culture was assessed by TEM. Protoscolex alterations observed in treated parasites included an increase in cellular vacuolization, swelling of mitochondria, rounding of cells, damage to the tegument, decrease in glycogen, a breakdown of the extracellular matrix and an increase in lipid globules. The untreated protoscoleces, by comparison, had few changes during the 10-day culture period with the exception of large amounts of extracellular glycogen observed in the protoscoleces at culture days 7 and 10. From these results, CsA is clearly an effective scolicidal agent in vitro that may have potential application as a new therapeutic agent in the treatment of human hydatid disease.

Information

Type
Research Article
Copyright
2004 Cambridge University Press
Figure 0

Fig. 1. Percentage survival of Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces following 12 days of in vitro culture with various doses of CsA. CsA doses are represented by the symbols [lozf ] 100 μg/ml, [bull ] 50 μg/ml, [utrif ] 20 μg/ml, [dtrif ] 10 μg/ml, [squf ] 5 μg/ml and ○ No CsA.

Figure 1

Fig. 2. Survival of Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces following time pulse treatment with various doses of CsA. Data from culture day 5 show survival of protoscoleces when treated for 5 min, 1, 12 and 72 h in culture with CsA. In each time group the doses of CsA are represented by individual bars. The untreated controls are represented by black bars and doses of CsA at 50 (), 20 (□), 10 () and 1 μg/ml () are plotted on the right of the controls respectively.

Figure 2

Fig. 3. Percentage survival of invaginated Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces following (A) 15 days in culture with SHCF medium or (B) 20 days in DMEM medium. Cultures contained either medium plus the CsA vehicle alone ([utrif ]), medium ([bull ]) or various doses of CsA represented in replicate by □ or [squf ]. Each of the graphs within group A or B represents data from protoscoleces treated with different CsA doses. Data from cultures containing 1 μg/ml of CsA are represented in the graph at the top left of group A or B, 10 μg/ml in the top right, 50 μg/ml in the bottom left and 100 μg/ml in the bottom right.

Figure 3

Fig. 4. TEM ultrastructure of Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces in in vitro culture. (A–D) Untreated protoscoleces sampled from cultures at days 1, 3, 7 and 10. (A,B) Protoscoleces from culture days 1 and 3 respectively, note there are no distinct morphological differences in ultrastructure from specimens at day 0. (C,D) Protoscoleces from days 7 and 10 respectively, glycogen (G) has disseminated in the extracellular matrix. (F–I) Ultrastructure of protoscoleces treated with CsA in vitro. (F,G) Specimens treated for 1 and 2 days respectively. The basal laminar is separating from the distal cytoplasm of the tegument forming electron-lucent regions with no apparent matrix and vacuoles (V) are forming in the tegumentary cytons. (H) Specimens from culture day 5, vacuoles forming in teguments cells are more extensive, some cells appear to be rounded and lipidic structures are present. (I) Specimens from culture day 10, showing degradation of the tegument (T), detached microtriches (Mt) and large electron-lucent areas in the soma region. (E) Mitochondria (M) and lipid globules (L) from untreated protoscolex and (J) Higher magnification of enlarged mitochondria (M) from CsA-treated protoscolex.