Trypanosoma cruzi: methoprene is a potent agent to sterilize blood infected with trypomastigotes

Abstract The effects of methoprene, a juvenile hormone analogue (JHA), on Trypanosoma cruzi bloodstream trypomastigotes (Tulahuen strain, Tul 2 stock) were studied. It was observed that 150 μM of methoprene in in vitro experiments cause cellular death of T. cruzi . In contrast, methoprene was not able to clear bloodstream trypomastigotes in in vivo experiments, but it was observed a decrease of parasitemia levels of infected mice treated with 200 μg of methoprene/mouse/day during 5 days. According to these results and the low toxicity of methoprene, we suggest that this compound will serve as an effective agent to sterilize blood for transfusions. Index Descriptors and Abbreviations: Trypanosoma cruzi ; Methoprene; Juvenile hormone analogues; Bloodstream trypomastigotes; Blood sterilization.