Role of Nanomedicine in Ocular Parasitic Infections

Ocular parasites cause serious vision-threatening diseases. An early diagnosis and effective treatment are crucial to avoid side effects, such as blindness or eye removal. The first important step in diagnosing ocular parasite infections is to suspect them. Diagnosis is aided by ophthalmic examination, direct parasite identification in clinical samples and/or pathological lesions, immunoassays, and molecular methods. Despite this, ocular parasite infection diagnosis is fraught with difficulties in terms of sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy. The usage of nanoparticles may improve diagnosis by providing precise procedures for parasitic DNA, antigens, and antibodies detection in a variety of body specimens with fast, sensitive, and specific results. Low tolerability, long therapeutic duration, multiple adverse effects, and the emergence of medication resistance are all problems with existing anti-parasitic medications. Nanoparticles represent a promising way for the successful treatment of parasitic diseases by developing innovative drug carriers to target medications to infected sites while limiting high doses and adverse effects. They can also overcome the limitations of antiparasitic medications' low bioavailability, poor cellular permeability, non-specific distribution, and fast elimination from the body. The aim of the present chapter is to throw light on possible nanotechnology applications in ocular parasitic diseases caused by Toxoplasma gondii, Acanthamoeba spp. and Toxocara spp. with a focus on diagnosis, treatment, and vaccination.