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Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, June 2003, p. 1895-1901, Vol. 47, No. 6
0066-4804/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AAC.47.6.1895-1901.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Antileishmanial Activity of a Linalool-Rich Essential Oil from Croton cajucara

Maria do Socorro S. Rosa,1 Ricardo R. Mendonça-Filho,1,2 Humberto R. Bizzo,3 Igor de Almeida Rodrigues,1 Rosangela Maria A. Soares,1 Thais Souto-Padrón,1 Celuta Sales Alviano,1 and Angela Hampshire C. S. Lopes1*

Instituto de Microbiologia Prof. Paulo de Góes, Centro de Ciências da Saúde,1 Instituto de Química, Centro de Tecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, R.J., 219491-590,2 Embrapa Agroindústria de Alimentos, Rio de Janeiro, R.J., 23020-470, Brazil3

Received 17 April 2002/ Returned for modification 2 July 2002/ Accepted 10 March 2003

The in vitro leishmanicidal effects of a linalool-rich essential oil from the leaves of Croton cajucara against Leishmania amazonensis were investigated. Morphological changes in L. amazonensis promastigotes treated with 15 ng of essential oil per ml were observed by transmission electron microscopy; leishmanial nuclear and kinetoplast chromatin destruction, followed by cell lysis, was observed within 1 h. Pretreatment of mouse peritoneal macrophages with 15 ng of essential oil per ml reduced by 50% the interaction between these macrophages and L. amazonensis, with a concomitant increase by 220% in the level of nitric oxide production by the infected macrophages. Treatment of preinfected macrophages with 15 ng of essential oil per ml reduced by 50% the interaction between these cells and the parasites, which led to a 60% increase in the amount of nitric oxide produced by the preinfected macrophages. These results provide new perspectives on the development of drugs with activities against Leishmania, as linalool-rich essential oil is a strikingly potent leishmanicidal plant extract (50% lethal doses, 8.3 ng/ml for promastigotes and 8.7 ng/ml for amastigotes) which inhibited the growth of L. amazonensis promastigotes at very low concentrations (MIC, 85.0 pg/ml) and which presented no cytotoxic effects against mammalian cells.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Microbiologia Prof. Paulo de Góes, CCS, Bloco I, Cidade Universitária, Ilha do Fundão, 219491-590, Rio de Janeiro, R.J., Brazil. Phone: 55-21-2562-6711. Fax: 55-21-2560-8344. E-mail: angela.lopes{at}micro.ufrj.br.

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, June 2003, p. 1895-1901, Vol. 47, No. 6
0066-4804/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AAC.47.6.1895-1901.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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