Repositioning FDA-Approved Drug Against Chagas Disease and Cutaneous Leishmaniosis by Structure-Based Virtual Screening

Chagas disease and cutaneous leishmaniasis, two parasitic diseases caused by Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi) and Leishmania mexicana (L. mexicana), respectively, have a major global impact. Current pharmacological treatments for these diseases are limited and can cause severe side effects; thus, there is a need for new antiprotozoal drugs. Using molecular docking, this work describes a structure-based virtual screening of an FDA-approved drug library against Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania mexicana glycolytic enzyme triosephosphate isomerase (TIM), which is highly conserved in these parasites. The selected compounds with potential dual inhibitory activity were tested in vitro to confirm their biological activity. The study showed that five compounds: nilotinib, chlorhexidine, protriptyline, cyproheptadine, and montelukast, were more active against T. cruzi, than the reference drugs, nifurtimox and benznidazole while chlorhexidine and protriptyline were the most active against L. mexicana. The analysis of these compounds and their structural characteristics may provide the basis for the development of new antiprotozoal agents.