Parasitic Diseases

Back to basics with Duke, and a heartworm caution - Mad River Union Back to basics with Duke, and a heartworm caution - Mad River Union Posted: 30 May 2021 08:02 AM PDT Week 62. We have been seeing more and more dogs coming in to the shelter with heartworm, a potentially very disabling condition. With summer coming up quickly, I can't emphasize it enough that heartworm is an parasitic infection that is much easier to prevent than to treat.   Heartworms are parasites that are spread by mosquitoes in warmer areas of the county.   If you plan to take your dog backpacking or on excursions to the river or lakes, I strongly recommend talking with your veterinarian about heartworm prevention.   It costs over $1,000 to treat a dog who has become infected with the parasites; heartworm preventative can cost as little as $10 a month. Contact your vet for more information.   The shelter does still have big Jumbo, a young German Shepherd mix, i...

Question Corner: Do worms have an immune system? How do they fight infections? - The Hindu Question Corner: Do worms have an immune system? How do they fight infections? - The Hindu Posted: 29 May 2021 10:22 AM PDT (Subscribe to Science For All, our weekly newsletter, where we aim to take the jargon out of science and put the fun in. Click here .) Roundworms (Caenorhabditis elegans) are animals that lack dedicated immune cells. But they are constantly under attack from viruses and fungal parasites called microsporidia. Researchers from the U.S have now decoded the complex dynamics that are involved in how these organisms sense an infection. The paper published last month (Plos Pathogens) notes worms can sense changes in their metabolism and then unleash protective defenses, even if they don't directly sense the pathogens. The team studied an important biological pathway in the worms – the purine metabolism pathway. The results sug...

Vaccine target for devastating livestock disease could change lives of millions - Science Daily Vaccine target for devastating livestock disease could change lives of millions - Science Daily Posted: 27 May 2021 09:02 AM PDT The first ever vaccine target for trypanosomes, a family of parasites that cause devastating disease in animals and humans, has been discovered by scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute. By targeting a protein on the cell surface of the parasite Trypanosoma vivax, researchers were able to confer long-lasting protection against animal African trypanosomiasis (AAT) infection in mice. The study, published today (26 May 2021) in Nature , is the first successful attempt to induce apparently sterile immunity against a trypanosome parasite. A vaccine was long thought impossible due to the sophisticated ability of the parasites to evade the host immune system. As well as a strong vaccine target for AAT, the findings raise t...

TikTokers Try Eating Papaya Seeds to Treat Parasites. Does It Work? - Verywell Health TikTokers Try Eating Papaya Seeds to Treat Parasites. Does It Work? - Verywell Health Posted: 20 May 2021 02:52 PM PDT Getty Images / Verywell Health Key Takeaways A new TikTok trend recommends people eat papaya seeds to help treat or prevent possible intestinal parasite infections. While data is limited, experts say the seeds may actually be beneficial in treating parasites. If you're going to eat the seeds, start small to avoid upsetting your stomach. When we think about stomach trouble, many of us never imagine that we may have an actual parasite living in our gut. But parasites entering our gastrointestinal tract—causing some unsavory side-effects—are more common than you may think. Parasites are living organisms that live off of another organism to survive. When you are infected with a parasite, that organism sets up its...

200-year-old poop shows rural elites in New England had parasitic infections - EurekAlert 200-year-old poop shows rural elites in New England had parasitic infections - EurekAlert Posted: 03 May 2021 12:00 AM PDT In the early 19th century in North America, parasitic infections were quite common in urban areas due in part to population growth and urbanization. Prior research has found that poor sanitation, unsanitary privy (outhouse) conditions, and increased contact with domestic animals, contributed to the prevalence of parasitic disease in urban areas. A new study examining fecal samples from a privy on Dartmouth's campus illustrates how rural wealthy elites in New England also had intestinal parasitic infections. The findings are published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports . "Our study is one of the first to demonstrate evidence of parasitic infection in an affluent rural household in the Northeast," says c...

Researchers Discover Compound That Can Block Malaria Parasite from Sparking Illness - BioSpace Researchers Discover Compound That Can Block Malaria Parasite from Sparking Illness - BioSpace Fact-check: Did India's COVID cases plummet after hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin use? - Austin American-Statesman Experts Warn Against Using Ivermectin to Treat COVID-19 - Verywell Health Researchers Discover Compound That Can Block Malaria Parasite from Sparking Illness - BioSpace Posted: 24 May 2021 08:31 AM PDT Malaria, a mosquito-borne illness, affects millions of people each year across the globe and is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths each year. While several medications are available to treat malaria, there is worry about drug resistance developing in areas where the illness is endemic. A new drug compound under development has the potential to address that need. Researchers from the Francis Crick Ins...