In vitro effects of meclonazepam analogues on the growth of Trichomonas vaginalis

Trichomonas vaginalis is a facultative anaerobic protozoan that causes trichomoniasis, a sexually transmitted disease in humans. Currently metronidazole is the only FDA-approved antibiotic for trichomoniasis. To counter the emergence of metronidazole resistant strains of T. vaginalis, there is a need to find alternative drug treatments. Compound susceptibility assays were conducted on the T1 strain of T. vaginalis using nine meclonazepam analogues that were previously evaluated against Schistosoma mansoni. All nine compounds inhibited growth of T. vaginalis when tested at a preliminary concentration of 10 uM. Of the nine compounds, MACLO-DIF and MACLODY-3 were the most effective at inhibiting T. vaginalis growth, with IC50 concentrations below 1.000 uM. MACLODY, MACLODIC, MACLOBR, and MACLONAC had IC50 concentrations under 2.000, and MACLOETPH was the least effective inhibitor with an IC50 concentration of 3.210uM. Further testing is necessary to determine the mechanism of action, as well as structure-activity relationships