Initially, the use of liposomes was mainly confined to model membrane systems, however, recently their use as vehicles for transfer of genetic and other materials into cells in cultures or for drug delivery to desired cellular and subcellular sites in a living system has been the subject of discussion. Liposomes can vary widely in size, chemical composition, and surface characteristics; they ca...

In the absence of effective vector control measures and vaccines against leishmaniasis, effective chemotherapy remains the mainstay of treatment. As the armoury of antileishmanial drugs is limited, strategies should be made to target the emergence of drug resistance. The loss of efficacy of antimonials such as sodium stibogluconate in the Indian subcontinent which has been the mainstay of treat...

Leishmaniasis is widely ignored in discussions on the priorities of tropical diseases, and the alreadyexisting drugs present high toxicity or teratogenicity, as well as reduced efficacy due to the emergence of resistant strains. Marine natural products have received increasing attention over the last few decades because of the isolation of metabolites found in many products, with structural pat...

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) or Kala-azar is the most severe form of leishmaniasis and is uniformly fatal, if untreated. An estimated 500,000 new cases occur per year, 90% of which occur in the endemic areas of India, Bangladesh, Sudan Nepal and Brazil. More than 100,000 cases of VL occur in India alone every year and the state of Bihar accounts for more than 90% of these. Over the years new the...