The purpose of this research was to evaluate toxicity of uncoated magnesium oxide nanoparticles
(MgO NPs), MgO NPs coated with Peanut agglutinin (PNA) lectin, and PNA alone on the
promastigotes of Leishmania major (L. major) and macrophages of BALB/c mice. On the other
hand, antileishmanial property of uncoated MgO NPs, lectin coated MgO NPs, and PNA lectin
alone was evaluated, and also macrophage activation was investigated after treatment with
these materials by measurement of nitrite, H2O2, and some interleukins. This study showed that
PNA lectin and lectin coated MgO NPs had approximately no toxicity on L. major and
macrophages, but some toxic effects were observed for uncoated MgO NPs, especially at
concentration of 500 mg/mL. Interestingly, lectin coated MgO NPs had the highest antileishmanial
activity and macrophage activation, compared with uncoated MgO NPs and PNA lectin.
