November 15, 2012

expert reaction to new research into probiotic worm treatment of monkeys with colitis

A study, published in PLoS Pathogens, showed monkeys with chronic diarrhoea could be treated by microscopic parasite worm (helminth) eggs. The similarity of the condition to inflammatory bowel diseases provides hope for developing human treatments.

Prof. Graham A. W.  Rook, Centre for Clinical Microbiology, University College London, said:

“The findings suggested by this study are similar to data already published showing the same thing in mice¹. The processes the authors of this new research describe have also previously been suggested as one of the three mechanisms that enable helminth therapy to partially treat human inflammatory bowel disease.

“Nevertheless, the major mechanism of action for therapeutic helminth infection actually remains induction of immunoregulation²;  in rodent models the helminth does not need to be a gut parasite, nor does it need to go anywhere near the gut in any part of its life-cycle.”

¹Walk ST, Blum AM, Ewing SA et al. Alteration of the murine gut microbiota during infection with the parasitic helminth Heligmosomoides polygyrus. Inflamm Bowel Dis 2010;16:1841-9.

²Taylor MD, van der Werf N, Harris A, Graham AL, Bain O, Allen JE, Maizels RM. Early recruitment of natural CD4+ Foxp3+ Treg cells by infective larvae determines the outcome of filarial infection. Eur J Immunol. 2009 Jan;39(1):192-206.

‘Therapeutic Helminth Infection of Macaques with Idiopathic Chronic Diarrhea Alters the Inflammatory Signature and Mucosal Microbiota of the Colon’ by Loke et al, published in PLOS Pathogens on Thursday 15 November 2012.