Here’s a new article from the University of Manchester, finding worms are a key part of a well orchestrated immune system. Is it just me, or are you getting a little tired of the avalanche of proof while we wait patiently suffering, unable to afford or receive our worms? We want worms and we want [...]
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Article after article extolling the virtues of helminths’ ability to prevent allergies and autoimmune diseases always end in quotes like this: “The hope is that the work could aid the development of new treatments which work in the same way as gut parasites, by dampening down or rebalancing the immune system so that the body [...]
Monday, September 28, 2009
A new article from BBC News about the link beteen (lack of) parasites and allergy to dust mites. This is a very large study;1500+ schoolchildren in Vietnam. They gave 1/2 deworming tablets, and studied them for some period of time. Those without worms had a significantly increased allergy to dust mites. There wasn’t any conslusive [...]
Monday, September 14, 2009
Very entertaining radio show on parasites: http://blogs.wnyc.org/radiolab/2009/09/07/parasites/ And no, this isn’t an alien… First, they start with Carl Zimmer, a parasitologist who talks about amazing interactions between parasites and hosts. Then they discuss the hookworm eradication project, where it was found that the South was suffering from anemia, not laziness, and outhouses changed the course [...]
Monday, September 7, 2009
Excellent article on the human immune system, and how a huge population genetics study proves parasites have evolved with us to shape it. A quote: “Sironi and Fumagalli’s data suggest that our immune systems have co-evolved with parasitic worms—living alongside helminthes for millions of years has shaped the way our immune systems react to pathogens, [...]