Background. The development of new therapeutic strategies to treat patients for leishmaniasis has become a priority. The\nantileishmanial activity of the strychnobiflavone flavonoid was recently demonstrated against Leishmania amazonensis and\nLeishmania infantum amastigotes and promastigotes. The biological effect of this molecule was identified due to its capacity\nto interfere in the parasite mitochondrial membrane; however, the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. Methods\nand Results. In this study, a computational approach using bioinformatics was performed to screen biological targets of\nstrychnobiflavone in L. infantum. Computational programs, such as the target fishing approach and molecular docking assays,\nwere used. Results showed that the putative pathway targeted by strychnobiflavone in L. infantum is themethylglyoxal degradation\nsuperpathway, and one hydrolase-like protein was predicted to be the molecular target of this flavonoid in the parasites. Conclusion.\nIn this context, this study provides the basis for understanding the mechanism of action of strychnobiflavone in L. infantum and\npresents a strategy based on bioinformatics programs to screen targets of other molecules with biological action against distinct\npathogens.
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