Curative properties of muramyl dipeptide in experimental Naegleria meningoencephalitis.
Naegleria fowleri is a free-living amoeba which causes a fatal meningoencephalitis in man. Mice injected with the immunostimulant MDP or an attenuated 11RX strain of Salmonella enteritidis showed some resistance to an intranasal challenge with N. fowleri. In addition it was observed that some of the mice infected with N. fowleri and showing symptoms of naegleria meningoencephalitis, given a single injection of MDP were cured of this disease. Our findings suggest that the use of immunostimulants could be a new approach in the quest for therapeutic agents for this disease.
D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000562:Amebiasis / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D008590:Meningoencephalitis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D012477:Salmonella enteritidis / Q000276:immunology
D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine