LEISHMANIASIS AND MEDICINAL PLANTS: A REVIEW

According to the World Health Organization, Leishmaniasis is one of the most neglected re-emerging tropical diseases, being reported in several parts of the globe. In view of the difficulties encountered with drugs currently available on the market, such as high toxicity and, in some cases, resistance by the parasite, research has been carried out to find new alternatives for treating this disease. The objective of this study was to carry out a literature review on natural products used in Leishmania studies as potential treatment agents against that parasite. Scientific papers published in the past five years on the LILACS, PubMed and ScienceDirect electronic databases were analyzed using the following descriptors in English language and their correspondent in Portuguese: "medicinal plants" and "leishmania". A total of 61 articles from 17 countries were selected, mostly from Brazil and India. Based on the action mechanisms proposed by the authors of the studies performed with Leishmania amastigotes, a great part is associated with the oxidative stress in the cell and with changes in the macrophage environment, creating reactive species that act as microbicides. It is possible that an active compound from a given plant has more than one target in the cell, being able to interfere in different ways depending on the cell type and available targets. The advantages of using phytotherapy include low cost, low incidence of side effects, and high effectiveness. In addition, it is important to consider locally available plant species aimed at reducing costs.