Efficacy of albendazole against Anisakis simplex larvae in vitro

Background. The growing popularity in western countries of eating uncooked seafood has resulted in an increased incidence of anisakidosis. Aim. To study the in vitro activity of different concentrations of albendazole against Anisakis simplex larvae under different media pH. Methods. A. simplex larvae were obtained from fresh bakes acquired from the fish market of Madrid. They were divided into groups and placed in culture dishes (15 larvae each) containing RPMI-1640, in the presence or absence of different concentrations of albendazole (300, 400 and 500 mu g/mL). Results. Albendazole dose-dependently reduced the survival of the larvae, its maximum activity being at 500 mu g/mL when it killed almost all larvae at 48 h. Acidic medium pH significantly reduced the efficacy of albendazole. Conclusion. Albendazole is effective in killing A. simplex larvae at different pH in vitro, suggesting that this molecule could be useful in treating clinical manifestations of human anisakidosis. (c) 2005 Editrice Gastroenterologica Italiana S.r.l. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.