HORSHAM, Pa., July 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — In a study sponsored
by Topaz Pharmaceuticals Inc., a privately held specialty
pharmaceutical company, scientists from the University of
Massachusetts, Amherst presented data showing that a 0.5%
ivermectin (IVM) cream formulation was active against lice eggs
from permethrin resistant head lice. The data were presented
in a poster presentation on Saturday, July 9, 2011 at the 37th Annual
Meeting of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology in Baltimore,
Maryland.
“These data build on our earlier work showing this ivermectin
formulation is active against head lice,” said John M. Clark,
Ph.D., Professor of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of
Massachusetts Amherst. “The data suggest that a single
treatment with 0.5% ivermectin cream has the potential to fully
break the head louse life cycle. If approved by the FDA,
ivermectin cream has the potential to provide physicians with an
attractive treatment option.”
In the study, permethrin resistant head lice were allowed to lay
eggs in tufts of human hair. Adult lice were removed and the
tufts with eggs were exposed to 0.5% ivermectin cream, to vehicle
only, or to unformulated, diluted ivermectin. After a 10-minute
exposure, tufts were thoroughly rinsed and incubated. Any
hatched lice were placed onto new tufts and moved to a feeding cup.
The hatchability of treated eggs was not affected by
ivermectin. No differences were detected between the mortality rate
of eggs exposed to 0.5% ivermectin cream and those exposed to
unformulated ivermectin. The percent of hatched lice from
eggs exposed to 0.5% ivermectin cream that took a blood meal,
relative to eggs exposed to placebo, was significantly decreased
(by 82-95%). All hatched lice from eggs treated with 0.5%
ivermectin cream died within 48 hours.
About Ivermectin
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