Antiparasitic effect of Dinoponera quadriceps giant ant venom

• Dinoponera quadriceps venom (DqV) have antiparasitic effect.
• DqV was able to kill promastigote forms of Leishmania amazonensis.
• DqV was able to kill all developmental forms of Trypanosoma cruzi.
• DqV has high selective index for T. cruzi.
• Necrotic and apoptotic mechanisms are involved in cell death of T. cruzi.

Neglected tropical diseases (NTD) are treated with toxic therapy of limited efficacy. Previously, we studied the antimicrobial effect of Dinoponera quadriceps venom (DqV) against bacteria. To continue the study, we report in this short communication the antimicrobial effect of DqV against Leishmania amazonensis and Trypanosoma cruzi. DqV inhibits the promastigote forms of L. amazonensis and all T. cruzi developmental forms, with low toxicity in host cells. DqV causes cell death in T. cruzi through necrotic and apoptotic mechanisms observed by staining the cells with annexin V-FITC (AX) and propidium iodide (PI), loss of mitochondrial membrane potential by flow cytometry analyses and confocal microscopy and morphological alterations, such as loss of membrane integrity and cell shrinkage by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In conclusion, we suggest there is an antimicrobial effect also on parasites.