Nitrofuran drugs as common subversive substrates of Trypanosoma cruzi lipoamide dehydrogenase and trypanothione reductase.

Lipoamide dehydrogenase (LipDH), trypanothione reductase (TR), and glutathione reductase (GR) catalyze the NAD(P)H-dependent reduction of disulfide substrates. TR occurs exclusively in trypanosomatids which lack a GR. Besides their physiological reactions, the flavoenzymes catalyze the single-electron reduction of nitrofurans with the concomitant generation of superoxide anions. Here, we report on the interaction of clinically used antimicrobial nitrofurans with LipDH and TR from Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas' disease (South American trypanosomiasis), in comparison to mammalian LipDH and GR. The compounds were studied as inhibitors and as subversive substrates of the enzymes. None of the nitrofurans inhibited LipDH, although they did interfere with the disulfide reduction of TR and GR. When the compounds were studied as substrates, T. cruzi LipDH showed a high rate of nitrofuran reduction and was even more efficient than its mammalian counterpart. Several derivatives were also effective subversive substrates of TR, but the respective reaction with human GR was negligible. Nifuroxazide, nifuroxime, and nifurprazine proved to be the most promising derivatives since they were redox-cycled by both T. cruzi LipDH and TR and had pronounced antiparasitic effects in cultures of T. cruzi and Trypanosoma brucei. The results suggest that those nitrofuran derivatives which interact with both parasite flavoenzymes should be revisited as trypanocidal drugs.