Department of Medicine, UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ 07103, USA.
J Mol Med (Berl). 2010 Jan;88(1):27-38. doi: 10.1007/s00109-009-0546-0. Epub 2009 Oct 21.
Helminth infection is a worldwide health problem. In addition to directly causing disease, helminthic infection also affects the incidence and progression of other diseases by exerting immune modulatory effects. In animal models, infection with helminthic parasites can prevent autoimmune diseases and allergic inflammatory diseases, but worsens protective immunity to certain infectious pathogens. In this review, we summarize current findings regarding the effects of helminth infection on type 1 diabetes, tuberculosis, and asthma and discuss possible mechanisms through which helminthic parasites modulate host immunity. Investigating these mechanisms could lead to treatment strategies that specifically modulate the immune response as well as address fundamental questions in immunobiology.
寄生虫感染是一个全球性的健康问题。除了直接导致疾病外,寄生虫感染还通过免疫调节作用影响其他疾病的发生和进展。在动物模型中,寄生虫感染可以预防自身免疫性疾病和过敏性炎症性疾病,但会加重对某些传染性病原体的保护性免疫。在这篇综述中,我们总结了寄生虫感染对 1 型糖尿病、结核病和哮喘的影响的最新发现,并讨论了寄生虫调节宿主免疫的可能机制。研究这些机制可能会导致专门调节免疫反应的治疗策略,并解决免疫生物学中的基本问题。