Pharmacology · Class
Anthelmintics !
Drugs against worms: benzimidazoles for roundworms and cysts, ivermectin for Strongyloides and filariae, praziquantel for flukes and tapeworms.
Updated 2026-11-01
What they are
Drugs against helminths: nematodes (roundworms), cestodes (tapeworms and their cysts) and trematodes (flukes). WHO uses albendazole or mebendazole for mass deworming of children and women where soil-transmitted helminths are common, as in rural Colombia.
Mechanism of action
Three key targets: benzimidazoles (albendazole, mebendazole) bind worm β-tubulin and block microtubules; ivermectin opens glutamate-gated chloride channels and leaves the worm in flaccid paralysis; praziquantel lets calcium in, causing spastic paralysis and damaging the tegument of flukes and tapeworms. Pyrantel is a nicotinic agonist that causes spastic paralysis.
Target: β-tubulin, glutamate-gated chloride channels, schistosome TRP channel
Drugs in this class
- AlbendazoleBroad-spectrum benzimidazole: used for deworming against soil-transmitted helminths and, absorbed with fatty food, for…Helminth β-tubulin (colchicine site)
- MebendazoleA benzimidazole that is barely absorbed: it acts in the gut lumen against roundworm, whipworm, hookworm and pinworm.Helminth β-tubulin (colchicine site)
- IvermectinSingle-dose oral avermectin: the drug of choice for strongyloidiasis and onchocerciasis; it opens chloride channels…Nematode glutamate-gated chloride channel (GluCl)
- PraziquantelAnthelmintic against flukes and tapeworms: the drug of choice for schistosomiasis; it lets calcium in and paralyses…Schistosome TRPM channel (TRPM_PZQ)
Others in the class
- Diethylcarbamazine
- Pyrantel pamoate
- Levamisole
- Niclosamide
- Triclabendazole
- Moxidectin
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
Which anthelmintic is preferred for Strongyloides stercoralis?
Ivermectin; Strongyloides responds poorly to albendazole and mebendazole.
Why is albendazole preferred over praziquantel in neurocysticercosis?
It penetrates the CSF better, and the corticosteroids given with it raise its levels while they lower praziquantel levels.
What target do benzimidazoles act on?
Worm β-tubulin: they stop microtubules from forming.
Educational content on how drugs work; not a prescribing guide and no substitute for a health professional's advice. No doses are given.
Sources: Soil-transmitted helminth infections (World Health Organization, 2023); Clinical Care of Cysticercosis (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2024); ATCDDD - ATC/DDD Index (WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology, 2026); Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 14th ed., ch. 68 (McGraw Hill, 2023).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.