title: Effect of parenterally injected benzimidazole compounds on Echinococcus multilocularis and Taenia crassiceps metacestodes in laboratory animals.
abstract: In mice infected with metacestodes of Taenia crassiceps, the following compounds were at least partially effective when injected intraperitoneally at the dosage indicated: cambendazole (500 mg/kg), mebendazole (6.25 mg/kg), oxibendazole (500 mg/kg), 5-benzamido-2(4-thiazolyl)benzimidazole (500 mg/kg), 2-carboethoxyamino benzimidazole (125 mg/kg), and 2-carbomethoxyamino benzimidazole (500 mg/kg). The following were inactive at the dosage indicated: parbendazole (500 mg/kg), thiabendazole (1,000 mg/kg), and fenbendazole (1,000 mg/kg). Mebendazole, which showed some activity at 6.25 mg/kg, was highly active as a single intraperitoneal dose at 25 mg/kg. When injected subcutaneously, mebendazole was much less active than when given intraperitoneally. In mice infected with metacestodes of Echinococcus multilocularis, intraperitoneal injection of mebendazole at 75 to 150 mg/kg, daily for 3 days, was highly effective (95 to 100% reduction in cyst mass). In contrast, oral administration at 1,000 mg/kg, daily for 3 days, was only partially effective. The drug was also effective when given intraperitoneally to infected cotton rats. A water-soluble benzimidazole, carboxymethyleneamino cambendazole, was approximately 50% effective in mice when injected daily for 3 days at a dosage of 75 or 150 mg/kg. The results suggest that, in metacestode infections of medical importance, it may be possible to kill the parasite by delivering a drug to its immediate vicinity, and so to reduce the required dosage with respect to the host.
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D001562:Benzimidazoles / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002159:Cambendazole / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002219:Carbamates / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004443:Echinococcosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000469:parasitology; D005260:Female; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D007279:Injections, Subcutaneous; D008463:Mebendazole / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D051379:Mice; D051381:Rats; D013622:Taeniasis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000469:parasitology
chemical_list: D001562:Benzimidazoles; D002219:Carbamates; C011321:oxibendazole; D002159:Cambendazole; D008463:Mebendazole