In less-developed countries, parasitic roundworms can colonize the gut and cause significant intestinal problems. But autoimmune diseases, the devastating package of disorders in which the body’s immune system attacks healthy cells, are rare in those places. By contrast, in the United States, where roundworm infections are no longer part of the ecosystem, as many as 50 million people suffer with autoimmune diseases. Coincidence? Many scientists don’t think so. Worms seem to block the culprit inflammatory response and researchers hope to isolate the molecules involved to produce a worm-derived oral treatment that targets autoimmune diseases.
Andrea Choe
Jon LaPook
Aspen Ideas: Health takes place on the Aspen Institute’s wondrous 40-acre campus in the Rocky Mountains from June 20-23, 2024. The three-day event, which has opened the renowned Aspen Ideas Festival since 2014, is where health’s biggest challenges meet its biggest thinkers. #AspenIdeasHealth #AspenIdeas
For more information about Aspen Ideas: Health, visit www.aspenideas.org/attend/health.
Негізгі бет Taking on Autoimmune Diseases-with Worms!
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