Quinacrine – The Winding Road from the Most Important Antimalarial of Its Time to an Indispensable Antiparasitic (Orphan) Drug of our Days

Authors

  • Andreas Neumayr Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Kreuzstrasse 2, CH-4123 Allschwil, Switzerland; University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland; Department of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Queensland, Australia
  • Esther Kuenzli Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Kreuzstrasse 2, CH-4123 Allschwil, Switzerland; University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.2533/chimia.2023.574

PMID:

38047832

Keywords:

Atabrin, Giardiasis, Mepacrine, Orphan drug, Quinacrine

Abstract

Quinacrine, the main antimalarial drug during World War II, has had a chequered history that included the successful repurposing as an intrapleural sclerosant for the treatment of malignant pleural effusions, a non-surgical method of female sterilisation, and the use as an immunomodulatory drug in lupus erythematosus. While no longer used for these former indications, quinacrine (re)emerged as an indispensable second-line drug for the treatment of nitroimidazole-refractory Giardia duodenalis infections, and thus depicts an indispensable “orphan drug”.

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Published

2023-09-20