In vitro chemosensitization of Plasmodium falciparum to antimalarials by verapamil and probenecid.

We tested the effect of probenecid and verapamil in chemosensitizing Plasmodium falciparum to 14 antimalarials using the multidrug-resistant strain V1S and the drug-sensitive 3D7. Verapamil chemosensitizes V1S to quinine and chloroquine. Interestingly, probenecid profoundly chemosensitizes V1S to piperaquine. Thus, probenecid could be used to increase piperaquine efficacy in vivo.