New Strategies in the Treatment of <i>Plasmodium berghei</i> based on Nanoparticles: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background Drug resistance is a current issue affecting parasites caused by Plasmodium.Therefore, researchers have expanded their studies on nanoparticles to find new and effectivedrugs that can treat drug-resistant strains. The present study systematically investigates the effect ofdifferent nanoparticles, including metal, polymer, and lipid nanoparticles, on Plasmodium berghei. Methods In this study, English-language online literature was obtained from the databases ScienceDirect, PubMed, Scopus, Ovid, and Cochrane to conduct a systematic review. In the search, we usedthe keywords: (Plasmodium Berghei) AND (Malaria) AND (Parasitemia) AND (antimalarial activity)AND (nanoparticles) AND (Solid lipid NPS) AND (Nano lipid carriers) AND (Artemether)AND (Chloroquine) AND (intraperitoneal) AND (in vivo). Initially, a total of 160 studies were retrievedfrom the search. After removing duplicates, 80 studies remained. After reviewing the titleand abstract of each study, 45 unrelated studies were eliminated. Results The remaining 35 studies were thoroughly reviewed using the full texts. The final resultwas 21 studies that met the inclusion/exclusion criteria. Conclusion Using these findings, we can conclude that various nanoparticles possess antiparasiticeffects that may be applied to emerging and drug-resistant parasites. Together, these findings suggestthat nanostructures may be used to design antiparasitic drugs that are effective against Plasmodiumberghei.