title: Treatment of Cryptosporidium: What We Know, Gaps, and the Way Forward.
abstract: Cryptosporidiosis is increasingly recognized as an important global health concern. While initially reported in immunocompromised such as AIDS patients, cryptosporidiosis has now been documented as a major cause of childhood diarrhea and an important factor in childhood malnutrition. Currently, nitazoxanide is the only proven anti-parasitic treatment forCryptosporidiuminfections. However, it is not effective in severely immunocompromised patients and there is limited data in infants. Immune reconstitution or decreased immunosuppression is critical to therapy in AIDS and transplant patients. This limitation of treatment options presents a major public health challenge given the important burden of disease. Repurposing of drugs developed for other indications and development of inhibitors for novel targets offer hope for improved therapies, but none have advanced to clinical studies.
authors.affiliation: Infectious Disease Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston, 301 University Boulevard, Route 0435, Galveston, TX 77555-0435 USA, TeL 1-409-747-0236, FAX 1-409-772-6527.
authors.forename: Hayley
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sparks
authors.affiliation: Infectious Disease Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston, 301 University Boulevard, Route 0435, Galveston, TX 77555-0435 USA, TeL 1-409-747-0236, FAX 1-409-772-6527.
authors.forename: Gayatri
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nair
authors.affiliation: Infectious Disease Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston, 301 University Boulevard, Route 0435, Galveston, TX 77555-0435 USA, TeL 1-409-747-0236, FAX 1-409-772-6527.
authors.forename: Alejandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Castellanos-Gonzalez
authors.affiliation: Infectious Disease Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston, 301 University Boulevard, Route 0435, Galveston, TX 77555-0435 USA, TeL 1-409-747-0236, FAX 1-409-772-6527.
authors.forename: A Clinton
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: White
keywords: Cryptosporidium; Cryptosporidium hominis; Cryptosporidium parvum; cryptosporidiosis; nitazoxanide; paromomycin