Purpose

Today, the use of natural products and nanostructures has increased. Given the reports on beneficial effects of various organotellurane compounds on types of visceral leishmaniasis, we decided to investigate the effect of TeO₂ NPs on Leishmania major (L. major). Tellurium can cause cell apoptosis in cancer cells without activating the caspase-pathway.

Methods

TeO₂ NPs at first synthesized and the structure was checked by XRD, SEM and EDS tests. The cytotoxic effect of TeO₂ NPs against L. major promastigotes, amastigotes and macrophages was assessed by MTT test or counting. The possible apoptosis of L. major by TeO₂ NPs was evaluated by flow cytometry test. For in vivo assay, the lesions of infected BALB/c mice with L. major promastigotes were treated with TeO₂ NPs, then the lesion size and survival rate were evaluated.

Results

The synthesis of TeO₂ with tetragonal structure was confirmed by XRD. The combination of nanorods and nanoflakes and the presence of Te were proven by SEM and EDS, respectively. According the effects of nanoparticle on promastigotes and amastigotes, the IC₅₀ values of TeO₂ after 72 h of incubation were 15.13 and 52.22 µg/ml, respectively. TeO₂ NPs induced apoptosis in about 41% of promastigotes. The ulcer greatly healed and survival rate was higher in treated mice compared to those in control group.

Conclusion

Based on the data, favorable anti-leishmanial properties were observed by using TeO₂ NPs. TeO₂ NPs have cytotoxic impacts on L. major promastigotes and amastigotes in vitro and in vivo and may be regarded as a therapy option.

中文翻译：

---

氧化碲 (TeO2) 纳米棒和纳米薄片的合成及其在体外和体内对主要利什曼原虫的疗效评价

目的

今天，天然产物和纳米结构的使用有所增加。鉴于各种有机碲烷化合物对内脏利什曼病类型的有益影响的报道，我们决定研究 TeO ₂ NPs 对主要利什曼原虫( L. major ) 的影响。碲可以在不激活半胱天冬酶途径的情况下导致癌细胞中的细胞凋亡。

方法

首先合成了TeO ₂ NPs，并通过XRD、SEM和EDS测试检查了结构。TeO ₂ NPs对L. major promastigotes、amastigotes和巨噬细胞的细胞毒作用通过MTT测试或计数来评估。通过流式细胞术检测TeO _{2 NPs对}L.major可能的细胞凋亡进行评估。对于体内试验，用 TeO ₂ NPs 处理感染的 BALB/c 小鼠与L. major promastigotes的病变，然后评估病变大小和存活率。

结果

通过XRD证实了具有四方结构的TeO _{2的合成。}SEM 和 EDS 分别证明了纳米棒和纳米薄片的组合以及 Te 的存在。根据纳米颗粒对前鞭毛体和无鞭毛体的影响， TeO ₂在孵育72 h后的IC ₅₀值分别为15.13和52.22 µg/ml。TeO ₂ NPs 在大约 41% 的前鞭毛体中诱导细胞凋亡。与对照组相比，治疗组小鼠的溃疡大大愈合，存活率更高。

结论

基于这些数据，使用TeO ₂ NPs 观察到了有利的抗利什曼特性。TeO _{2 NPs}在体外和体内对L. major promastigotes 和 amastigotes具有细胞毒性影响，可被视为一种治疗选择。