Autoimmune and inflammatory diseases represent a significant health burden,
especially in affluent societies and that no cure exists for majority of these diseases.
Medication can slow the disease's progression, but many of the drugs on the market
have unpleasant side effects. Current research on parasitic worms (helminthes) has
demonstrated a great potential for whole worms, their eggs or their excretory/secretory
proteins in down regulating the immune system and hence the associated inflammatory
responses both in vitro and in vivo, in various animal models of diseases and in someclinical trials. The helminthes are thought to modulate and down regulate the T helper
cell 1 (Th1) and T helper cell 2 (Th2) axis. Helminthic therapy is hence a novel attempt
to restore some of the organisms that we have co evolved with, that can modulate our
immune system thereby leading to remission or cure from certain incurable inflammatory
and auto immune diseases.
The rapid rise in prevalence of immune mediated diseases, like inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis and asthma inhighly developed industrialized countries, as populations adopt modern hygienic practices, suggests an existence of a strong correlation
between improved sanitation and hygiene and a drastic increase in atopic, autoimmune, and inflammatory diseases.
No comments:
Post a Comment