Figure 4. Animal experiment A.

ATV, 3BP, ATV + 3BP, or ABZ were administered by mixed feeding (200 mg/kg/day each) prior to infection with parasite eggs. 3BP was mixed with honey and administered at 25 mg/kg/day twice weekly. Subsequently, 300 parasite eggs prepared from the feces of an E. multilocularis-infected dog were orally administered to BALB/C (n = 10) mice. Administration of each drug was continued until day 28. As shown in the figure, only the ATV + 3BP and ABZ groups showed significant reductions in cyst counts; notably, the ATV + 3BP mixture was more effective than 3BP or ATV alone. MF alone, Ver alone, and their combinations with ATV showed no significant anti-echinococcal effect in this experiment (data not shown).

ATV, atovaquone; 3BP, 3-bromopyruvate; ABZ, albendazole; MF, mefloquine; Ver, verapamil; E. multilocularis, Echinococcus multilocularis