Pentamidine isethionate

Pentamidine isethionate is an antimicrobial agent for prevention and treatment of Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) caused by Pneumocystis jirovecii. (In Vitro) :Pentamidine (0-10 μg/mL; 6 days; WM9, DU145, C4-2, Hey, WM480, and A549 cells) treatment inhibits the growth of cancer cells in a concentration-dependent manner.The cytotoxic properties of Pentamidine isethionate towards the promastigotes of the protozoan parasite Leishmania infantum is determined. The leishmanicidal activity of Pentamidine isethionate is 60 times higher after 72 h of incubation than that of Cisplatin. Pentamidine isethionate induces a higher amount of programmed cell death (PCD) than Cisplatin, which is associated with inhibition of DNA synthesis and cell-cycle arrest in the G2/M phase. Binding of Pentamidine isethionate to calf-thymus DNA (CT-DNA) induces conformational changes in the DNA double helix, consistent with a B-->A transition. The interaction of Pentamidine isethionate with ubiquitin leads to a 6% increase in the beta-sheet content of the protein. (In Vivo) :Pentamidine (0.25 mg/mouse; intramuscular injection; every 2 days; for 4 weeks; athymic nude mice) treatment markedly inhibits the growth of WM9 human melanoma tumors in nude mice.