Suggested dosage rates of melarsoprol in the treatment of mice experimentally infected with Trypanosoma brucei gambiense

Abstract

One group of BALB/c mice infected with a highly virulent strain of Trypanosoma brucei gambiense were treated intraperitoneally with three series of three injections (each injection of 10 mg/kg) of Mel-B separated by seven days of rest, while a second group was treated once by a single injection. All the Mel-B treated mice in both experiments were negative for parasites when examined using either the wet blood film or buffy coat methods, but were intermittently PCR positive during the sampling period. We encourage the use of a repeat negative PCR test over a one month period in combination with corroborative clinical and parasitological investigation to be suggestive of cure in experimental animals previously infected with trypanosomosis. In view of the exorbitant costs of Mel-B and its extreme toxicity, it is recommended that Mel-B be given as one course of two injections (each equivalent to 10 mg/kg) separated by 2 d of rest in experimentally infected rodent models.