Evaluation of in vitro antileishmanial efficacy of cyclosporin A and its non-immunosuppressive derivative, dihydrocyclosporin A

Background New therapeutic drugs are urgently needed against visceral leishmaniasis because current drugs, such as pentavalent antimonials and miltefosine, produce severe side effects and development of resistance. Whether cyclosporine A (CsA) and its derivatives can be used as therapeutic drugs for visceral leishmaniasis has been controversial for many years. Methods In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of CsA and its derivative, dihydrocyclosporin A (DHCsA-d), against promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes of Leishmania donovani. Sodium stibogluconate (SSG) was used as a positive control. Results Our results showed that DHCsA-d was able to inhibit the proliferation of L. donovani promastigotes (IC50: 21.24 mu M and 12.14 mu M at 24 h and 48 h, respectively) and intracellular amastigotes (IC50: 5.23 mu M and 4.84 mu M at 24 and 48 h, respectively) in vitro, but CsA treatment increased the number of amastigotes in host cells. Both DHCsA-d and CsA caused several alterations in the morphology and ultrastructure of L. donovani, especially in the mitochondria. However, DHCsA-d showed high cytotoxicity towards cells of the mouse macrophage cell line RAW264.7, with CC50 values of 7.98 mu M (24 h) and 6.65 mu M (48 h). Moreover, DHCsA-d could increase IL-12, TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma production and decrease the levels of IL-10, IL-4, NO and H2O2 in infected macrophages. On the contrary, CsA decreased IL-12, TNF-alpha, and IFN-gamma production and increased the levels of IL-10, IL-4, NO and H2O2 in infected macrophages. The expression of L. donovani cyclophilin A (LdCyPA) in promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes and the expression of cyclophilin A (CyPA) in RAW 264.7 cells were found to be significantly downregulated in the CsA-treated group compared to those in the untreated group. However, no significant changes in LdCyPA and CyPA levels were found after DHCsA-d or SSG treatment. Conclusions Our findings initially resolved the dispute regarding the efficacy of CsA and DHCsA-d for visceral leishmaniasis treatment. CsA showed no significant inhibitory effect on intracellular amastigotes. DHCsA-d significantly inhibited promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes, but it was highly cytotoxic. Therefore, CsA and DHCsA-d are not recommended as antileishmanial drugs.