Avaliação citotóxica, mutagênica e genotóxica dos análogos do Megazol

Abstract

Chagas disease is an infectious neglected tropical disease responsible for a large number of infected people and at risk for infection, mainly in poor areas of Latin America. At the moment, there are just two drugs, Benzonidazol and Nifurtimox, available for the Chagas disease treatment, but they are ineffective since they have low cure rates. Megazol is an important representative of nitroimidazole class and it is a promising alternative because of its trypanocidal activity with a superior profile of action compared to the available treatment for Chagas disease. However, Megazol is not used clinically since its mutagenic and carcinogenic activity was reported. The Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology (Farmanguinhos) has designed 3 analogues from Megazol: PTAL 05-02 (2-amine-5-(1-methyl-5-nitro-1H-imidazole-2-yl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole), PAMT 09 (2-amine-N-(1-methyl-4-nitro-1H-imidazole-5-yl)-5-(trifluoromethyl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole) and PTAL 04-09 (1-(1-methyl-4-nitro-1H-imidazole-5-yl)-1H-pirazole). The aim of this work is to present new Megazol analogous molecules with trypanocidal activity, similar pharmacodynamic profile and less or none genotoxic effect developed using strategies of rational drug design. Genotoxic Tests for the safe evaluation of new bioactive substances were used, according to OECD guidelines. The Salmonella/microssoma test was used in the mutagenic and citotoxic evaluation using Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium strains lacking and overproducing nitroreductases and acetyltransferases enzymes. The PAMT 09 analogue was not mutagenic in any concentration and strain used. The PTAL 05-02 and PTAL 04-09 analogues was mutagenic, in the absence of S9 mix, to the TA98/1,8-DNP6 strain. In the citotoxic evaluation, the three analogues were citotoxic, with and without S9 mix. The micronucleus test using rat macrophage cells was used in the genotoxic evaluation of Megazol analogous. The three analogues were capable of induce the micronuclei formation and showed citotoxic effect.