Browsing by Autor "Niurka Mollineda-Diogo"

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Actividad anti-leishmanial y citotoxicidad de Jatropha gossypifolia L.
(Universidad de Granada, 2020) Yoan Verao Esquibel; Arelys López Sacerio; Mirtha Mayra González Bedia; Niurka Mollineda-Diogo; Sergio Sifontes
Introducción: Los extractos acuosos de las hojas de Jatropha gossypifolia L. son utilizados de forma tradicional en el tratamiento de la leishmaniasis. No existen informes concluyentes sobre su efectividad y su\ncitotoxicidad aunque en estudios recientes ha quedado avalada la utilidad de la planta en el tratamiento\nde la leishmaniasis utilizando otros solventes.\nMétodo: Se determinó la actividad leishmanicida y la citotoxicidad de los extractos acuosos e hidroalcohólicos de las hojas de Jatropha gossypifolia L. utilizando el método de fluorescencia de la resazurina en\npromastigotes de Leishmania amazonensis y macrófagos peritoneales de ratón Balb/c respectivamente.\nResultados: Se obtuvieron unas concentraciones inhibitorias 50 de 0,28 µg/mL ± 0,15 µg/mL (n=3) y\n0,59 µg/mL ± 0,26 µg/mL (n=3) para el extracto acuoso e hidroalcohólico respectivamente, aunque no\nse presentó actividad parasiticida a ninguna de las concentraciones evaluadas. De igual manera las concentraciones citotóxicas 50 obtenidas fueron de 0,91 µg/mL ± 0,11 µg/mL (n=3) y 0,57 µg/mL ± 0,12 µg/\nml (n=3).\nConclusiones: El extracto acuoso resulta ser más eficaz y menos citotóxico frente a los promastigotes de\nLeishmania amazonensis. Dichos resultados avalan la utilización tópica de los extractos en su formulación\ntradicional para el tratamiento de la leishmaniosis cutánea
Computational Investigation of the Potential Antileishmanial Mechanism of the Nitroindazole Derivative VATR131
(Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, 2025) Omar Casanova-Alvarez; Niurka Mollineda-Diogo; Aliuska Morales Helguera; Vicente J. Arán; Reinaldo Molina; Norberto Sánchez‐Cruz; Yendrek Velásquez-López; Yunierkis Pérez‐Castillo
Background: Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) significantly impact global health, particularly affecting impoverished communities. Among these diseases, leishmaniasis, caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania and transmitted through sandfly vectors, remains a challenge due to limited therapeutic options. Current treatments often suffer from significant limitations, such as high toxicity, limited efficacy, and the emergence of drug resistance. Objectives: This study investigates the potential antileishmanial mechanism of action of nitroindazole derivatives, specifically evaluating the compound VATR131, a molecule with notable selectivity and potency against Leishmania infantum. Methods: We employed computational methodologies, including target fishing, molecular docking, and atomistic molecular dynamics simulations, to identify and characterize potential molecular targets of VATR131. Results: The analysis revealed cysteine peptidase A as a promising target potentially mediating the antileishmanial activity of VATR131. Molecular dynamics simulations suggest critical hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonds between the compound and its most likely receptor, thus offering deeper insights into its potential mechanism of action. Conclusions: These findings contribute to the development of novel and effective therapies for leishmaniasis, highlighting the need for experimental validation and continued investigation of nitroindazole derivatives as promising therapeutic candidates.
Detection and counting of Leishmania intracellular parasites in microscopy images
(Frontiers Media, 2024) Lariza María de la Caridad Portuondo-Mallet; Niurka Mollineda-Diogo; Rubén Orozco‐Morales; Juan V. Lorenzo‐Ginori
Problem Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania and has a high prevalence and impact on global health. Currently, the available drugs for its treatment have drawbacks, such as high toxicity, resistance of the parasite, and high cost. Therefore, the search for new, more effective, and safe drugs is a priority. The effectiveness of an anti-leishmanial drug is analyzed through in vitro studies in which a technician manually counts the intracellular form of the parasite (amastigote) within macrophages, which is slow, laborious, and prone to errors. Objective(s) To develop a computational system that facilitates the detection and counting of amastigotes in microscopy images obtained from in vitro studies using image processing techniques. Methodology Segmentation of objects in the microscope image that might be Leishmania amastigotes was performed using the multilevel Otsu method on the saturation component of the hue, saturation, and intensity color model. In addition, morphological operations and the watershed transform combined with the weighted external distance transform were used to separate clustered objects. Then positive (amastigote) objects were detected (and consequently counted) using a classifier algorithm, the selection of which as well as the definition of the features to be used were also part of this research. MATLAB was used for the development of the system. Results and discussion The results were evaluated in terms of sensitivity, precision, and the F-measure and suggested a favorable effectiveness of the proposed method. Conclusions This system can help researchers by allowing large volumes of images of amastigotes to be counted using an automatic image analysis technique.