Nanosuspensions of fenbendazole and ivermectin induce parasite death and low inflammatory response in experimental neurocysticercosis

Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is the most common preventable infectious disease of the central nervous system (CNS) worldwide. Its treatment is performed with anthelmintics, albendazole, or praziquantel, associated with corticosteroids due to the intense inflammatory response after the parasite’s death. Also, the current treatment does not achieve full parasitic clearance and as it is used for over 40 years, there are a few reports on parisitic resistance and drug refractoriness. Other anthelminthic drugs in their commercial or nanoformulation form may present important activity against cysticerci and may present a therapeutic alternative to the current treatment. This study aimed the histopathologic evaluation of fenbendazole (FBZ), ivermectin (IVM), and their nanoformulations against an experimental model of NCC. Balb/c mice were intracranially inoculated with Taenia crassiceps cysticerci and treated with FBZ and FBZ nanoformulated (60mg/kg), IVM and IVM nanoformulated (0.2 mg/kg), albendazole (ABZ) (40 mg/kg) and 0.9 % NaCl (control group). After the animal’s euthanasia, the brains were removed and histopathologically analyzed. It was possible to observe the degradation of the parasite in all groups treated with anthelminthic drugs, however, the inflammatory response was significantly lower in the groups treated with FBZ, IVM, and their nanoformulations in comparison to Albendazole and control groups. In agreement with these results, nanosuspensions might allow better penetration across the blood-brain barrier and more consistent drug delivery to cystic regions in the CNS.