title: Inhibition assay of beta-hematin formation initiated by lecithin for screening new antimalarial drugs.
abstract: Measurement of heme crystallization provides a tool for screening new antimalarial drugs. Current assays for heme crystallization have employed initiators such as thermo, histidine-rich proteins, and lipids extracted from parasites and infected plasma. These initiators are unnatural or require laborious steps to prepare. In this study, we used a commercially available lipid, lecithin, a kind of phospholipid containing about 50% unsaturated fatty acids, as an initiator for heme crystal (beta-hematin) formation. We demonstrated that the inhibition of lecithin-based beta-hematin formation by antimalarial drugs is highly correlated with the preformed beta-hematin-based method. In addition, the lecithin-based assay is sensitive and convenient for large-scale screening of new novel antimalarials. We also indicated that dimethyl sulfoxide is an ideal solvent for preparation of heme stock solution, which is stable and can be used for 1 month.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Biology, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Matsugasaki, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8585, Japan.
authors.forename: Dai Thi Xuan
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Trang
authors.forename: Nguyen Tien
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Huy
authors.forename: Dinh Thanh
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Uyen
authors.forename: Motohiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sasai
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shiono
authors.forename: Shigeharu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Harada
authors.forename: Kaeko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kamei
mesh_terms: D000962:Antimalarials / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006418:Heme / Q000737:chemistry; D006420:Hemeproteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000962:Antimalarials; D006420:Hemeproteins; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines; C020753:hemozoin; D006418:Heme