microbe talk: april 2016

posted on april 29, 2016   by anand jagatia

can parasitic worms treat inflammatory diseases?

in 2010, a medical case report was published about a man with inflammatory bowel disease. the man had a serious case of a condition called ulcerative colitis, and was facing the prospect of having a section of his intestine completely removed.

but remarkably, the man was able to cure himself and achieve almost complete remission – by infecting himself with parasitic worms.

this month’s episode is about new research which may shed light on how a parasite can end up curing disease, rather than causing it.