Scientists have invented a new way to deliver treatment into the brain using a parasite. The study – led by the University of Glasgow in collaboration with Tel Aviv University and an international team of researchers, and published in Nature Microbiology – has also made the first successful step in finding out whether the parasites could […]
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A rare subtype of the world’s most common parasite, Blastocystis, has been found to produce a unique by-product of its metabolism, which can cause gut inflammation under normal gut conditions. The human gut—or gastrointestinal system—where food is broken down into nutrients for the body, is an ecosystem that harbours thousands of bacteria species. While some […]
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This parasite will self-destruct: researchers discover new weapon against drug-resistant malaria: A new method to combat malaria which sees the disease turn against itself could offer an effective treatment for the hundreds of millions of people infected globally each year, as the efficacy of current antimalarial drugs weakens. The University of Melbourne-led research published in […]
Scientists have made a major breakthrough in understanding how the parasite that causes malaria is able to multiply at such an alarming rate, which could be a vital clue in discovering how it has evolved, and how it can be stopped. For the first time, scientists have shown how certain molecules play an essential role […]
Lungworm in dogs, caused by the nematode parasite Angiostrongylus Vasorum, has been steadily increasing in prevalence since the first case was recorded in the UK in the 1970s. Believed to have travelled here from France, it first gained a foothold in South East England but has now spread throughout the country. According to recent studies, UK […]
How do malaria parasites invade human red blood cells where they multiply and cause infection? And can we use this knowledge to find a way to prevent this happening? To my mind, despite decades of research, we still know very little about this question or how to capitalise on our understanding of this mosquito-borne disease that […]
Thinking of travelling to Africa for work or pleasure this summer? Better read up schistosomiasis, also known as bilharzia or snail fever, a disease caused by a parasitic worm. According to the World Health Organisation, 61.6 million people were reportedly treated for bilharzia in 2014, most of them in Africa. More cases are being reported in the […]