Bill Angel wrote in message ...
>In article <7m7vic$8aa$1 at gxsn.com>,
>Graham Shepherd <muhero at globalnet.co.uk> wrote:
>>>>Toxoplasma isn't a bacterium and can't be treated with antibiotics. It's a
>>protozoan.
>> Perhaps I had misunderstood the article that I read....
> But in searching the web to check out the point that you made (above)
> I came across a relevant article:
>"http://www.apnet.com/inscight/11261997/grapha.htm">> The title of the article is: "Antibiotic Slows Parasites"
> and it reports on positive results from research that
>demonstrated that antibiotics designed to
>kill bacteria can also slow the growth of a multicellular parasite
>in petri dishes. According to the article:
> "The
> researchers treated a petri dish culture of human
> connective tissue cells that were infected with
> Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite that infects AIDS
> patients. Not only did the antibiotic ciprofloxacin
> inhibit apicoplast DNA copying by 50%, it also slowed
> parasite reproduction threefold and killed them soon
> afterward."
>> --- Bill
>
Just goes to show there's always something new - I've not seen that article.
The fact that it apparently works in vitro does not necessarily mean that it
will work as a treatment. The basic problem with any eukaryitoc disease
causing organism (eg fungi, protozoa) is that we are eukaryotes too. Our
cell machinery is pretty close to that of the disease agent - what's toxic
for them is toxic for us, usually. Pathogens are not difficult to eradicate,
unless you also want the patient to survive the treatment....
GS
