The group of biologically active nitroheterocyclic compounds includes various 5-and 2-nitroimidazoles and 5-nitrofurans, which can be used as therapeutic agents against a variety of protozoan and bacterial (anaerobic) infections of humans and animals. The current status in the the treatment of giardiasis, trichomoniasis, balantidiasis, histomoniasis, and amebiasis (including infections due to opportunistic amebas) is presented. The most relevant drugs (benznidazole, furazolidone, metronidazole, misonidazole, nifurtimox, nimorazole, nitazoxanide, ornidazole, secnidazole, and tinidazole) are characterized with regard to their chemical, chemotherapeutic, toxicological, pharmacokinetic, and pharmacological properties, including the mechanism of action and resistance in certain parasitic protozoa.

A method is presented which, for the first time, enables preparations to be tested costeffectively and on a large scale to determine their fungicidal effect. A possible residual effect of the preparation on the fungi during the incubation period is prevented by completely washing out any traces of preparations that are nearly insoluble in water from the fungal suspension by means of a cell harvester and using polyethylene glycol (PEG) 400 as the solvent. With its automated procedure, the method enables antimycotics to be tested in 8 or 12 concentrations with reproducible results. Despite the capital investment that is necessary, the new method is much more cost-effective than the original methods because the personnel involved per test compound can be considerably reduced.

This paper reviews the literature on zoonotic cestode infections with specific reference to the years 1999-2003. The sources and prevalence of various zoonotic tapeworm infections caused by adult and larval stages of the genera Taenia, Echinococcus, Diphyllobothrium, Hymenolepis and Dipylidium continue to be an important cause of morbidity and mortality, not only in most underdeveloped countries but also in industrialized countries, particularly in rural areas or among immigrant groups from endemic areas. The review gives a detailed report on recent molecular epidemiological studies on the taxonomy and phylogenetic variations in Echinococcus granulosus, immunological tests and imaging techniques used in epidemiological surveys and clinical investigations of important adult and larval tapeworm infections of animals and humans. Larval stages or metacestodes of Taenia solium, Echinococcus spp. and pseudophyllidean tapeworms (Spirometra syn. Diphyllobothrium spp.) may reside in various tissues of their intermediate hosts, including humans. In particular, Cysticercus cellulosae (T. solium) and the larvae of E. granulosus, and E. multilocularis, which are predominantly located in the liver, lungs and central nervous system forming various types of cysts, lead to a complex of systemic diseases such as cysticercosis, cystic echinococcosis and alveolar echinococcosis, respectively. Relatively rare clinical manifestations are seen in the muscles, subcutaneous tissue, spleen, kidneys, bones and body cavities.

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