Helminths News and Research

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Helminths are parasitic worms and a division of eukaryotic parasites that, unlike external parasites such as lice and fleas, live inside their host. They are worm-like organisms that live and feed off living hosts, receiving nourishment and protection while disrupting their hosts' nutrient absorption, causing weakness and disease. Those that live inside the digestive tract are called intestinal parasites. They can live inside humans as well as other animals. Approximately 3 billion people globally are infected with helminthes.

Study shows absence of zoonotic parasitic worms in European farmed fish

A recent study conducted by the EU Horizon 2020-funded ParaFishControl project aimed to demonstrate the absence of zoonotic parasitic worms in European farmed fish, specifically in gilthead sea bream, European sea bass, turbot, Atlantic salmon, rainbow trout and common carp.

8 Jun 2018

Elevated immune function during childhood linked to stunted growth

Elevated immune function during childhood results in as much as 49 percent growth reduction in Ecuador's indigenous Shuar population, researchers reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

24 Apr 2018

Gut microbes linked to severity of intestinal parasitic worm infections

A new study indicates that the kinds of microbes living in the gut influence the severity and recurrence of parasitic worm infections in developing countries.

9 Mar 2018

Parasitic tapeworm could someday help prevent or treat pediatric IBD

New research suggests that parasitic worms could someday help prevent or treat pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The study, published ahead of print in the American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology, was chosen as an APSselect article for March.

2 Mar 2018

Nervous system can "put the brakes" on immune response and prevent excessive inflammation

Cells in the nervous system can "put the brakes" on the immune response to infections in the gut and lungs to prevent excessive inflammation, according to research by Weill Cornell Medicine scientists. This insight may one day lead to new ways to treat diseases caused by unchecked inflammation, such as asthma and inflammatory bowel disease.

2 Mar 2018

Researchers shine new light on hookworm-malaria co-infections

A study released today from an international team of researchers shines new light on "co-infections," infectious diseases that attack the immune system simultaneously.

9 Feb 2018

Polio labs equipped to tackle neglected tropical diseases

Researchers from LSTM have investigated the possibility of utilizing the Polio network of 145 labs set up around the world to help tackle neglected tropical diseases which impact on the lives of about a billion of people.

27 Jan 2018

Intestinal worms have influence on allergy and asthma risk in humans

While young people with parasite worms currently have four times higher risk for developing allergies and asthma than others. Their parents are generally unaffected.

4 Dec 2017

Schistosomiasis: the biggest killer you’ve never heard of?

Schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease, sometimes called bilharzia or snail fever. The disease impacts a huge number of people around the world, over 230 million people are infected with one of the schistosome species, the parasitic worms that causes the disease.

4 Jul 2017

Scientists discover mechanism that provides potential new target for allergy treatments

In news that may bring hope to asthma sufferers, scientists discover a mechanism that provides a possible new target for allergy treatments.

6 Jun 2017

WHO announces new flagship programs for African region over next two years

The World Health Organization’s Regional Director for Africa announced today four new flagship programs for the region over the next two years, including a major push on adolescent health and the creation of regional emergency hubs.

26 May 2017

Study findings could pave way for better drugs to fight against parasitic infections

Immune cells, called macrophages, may rely on a compound to signal an attack to beat back attacks from parasitic worms, according to an international team of researchers, including Zissis C. Chroneos, associate professor of pediatrics, and microbiology and immunology at Penn State College of Medicine.

12 May 2017

Scientists reveal how immune cells activate to kill parasitic worms

An international team of researchers including Zissis C. Chroneos, associate professor of pediatrics, and microbiology and immunology at Penn State College of Medicine, reveals how immune cells called macrophages activate to kill parasitic worms.

11 May 2017

People with lymphatic filariasis more likely to acquire HIV infection, study shows

People infected with a parasitic worm called Wuchereria bancrofti in areas where HIV is endemic may be more likely to acquire HIV than people who are not infected with the worm, according to a new study in southwest Tanzania, published in The Lancet.

4 Aug 2016

Could worm infection counter IBD? An interview with Dr Loke and Dr Cadwell

The hygiene hypothesis refers to the idea that decreased exposure to certain infectious agents (because of better hygiene) is the reason why we have seen an increase in inflammatory diseases in the developed world.

17 May 2016

Study shows how parasitic worm infection increases susceptibility to TB

Scientists have shown how a parasitic worm infection common in the developing world increases susceptibility to tuberculosis. The study demonstrated that treating the parasite reduces lung damage seen in mice that also are infected with tuberculosis, thereby eliminating the vulnerability to tuberculosis (TB) that the parasite is known to cause.

17 Nov 2015

Duke study finds that gut worms can protect babies' brains from chronic inflammation

A Duke University study in rats finds that gut worms can protect babies' brains from long-term learning and memory problems caused by newborn infections.

21 Jul 2015

WHO/UNICEF: Lack of progress on water and sanitation threatens to undermine child survival, health benefits

Lack of progress on sanitation threatens to undermine the child survival and health benefits from gains in access to safe drinking water, warn WHO and UNICEF in a report tracking access to drinking water and sanitation against the Millennium Development Goals.

1 Jul 2015

Smoking cannabis may reduce chances of infection by intestinal worms

Washington State University researchers have found that the more hunter-gatherers smoke cannabis, the less they are infected by intestinal worms. The link suggests that they may unconsciously be, in effect, smoking medical marijuana.

1 Jun 2015

Enhanced biodiversity of worms, germs associated with better immune function, overall health

A growing body of evidence in the medical community holds that greater diversity of bacteria and even worms in the digestive tract offers protection against a variety of allergic and autoimmune problems.

9 Apr 2015