Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Brown University, Box G-B6, Providence, RI, 02912, USA,
Curr Infect Dis Rep. 2011 Jun;13(3):210-7. doi: 10.1007/s11908-011-0182-z.
Hookworms are bloodsucking nematodes that afflict up to 740 million persons in tropical and subtropical regions, with Asia and sub-Saharan Africa exhibiting particularly high infection rates. Prevalence, intensity, and pathology often vary considerably at both the regional and local level, and may be influenced by coinfection with other parasitic infections such as malaria. Immunoepidemiological studies suggest that hookworms manipulate the host immune response and may provide some protection from allergy and asthma. There has been substantial progress in elucidating the molecular pathogenesis of hookworm disease, with anticoagulants, protease inhibitors, digestive proteases, and novel excretory/secretory proteins being of particular interest. Mass chemotherapy remains a mainstay of hookworm control strategies, although continued use of drugs may lead to reduced efficacy and treatment failures have been observed. Consequently, a need exists for innovative approaches, such as vaccination; recent studies have identified and/or evaluated candidate vaccine antigens in human and animal models.
钩虫是一种吸血的线虫，在热带和亚热带地区影响多达 7.4 亿人，亚洲和撒哈拉以南非洲的感染率特别高。在区域和地方一级，流行率、强度和病理学经常有很大差异，并且可能受到与疟疾等其他寄生虫感染的共同感染的影响。免疫流行病学研究表明，钩虫操纵宿主的免疫反应，并可能为过敏和哮喘提供一些保护。在阐明钩虫病的分子发病机制方面已经取得了很大进展，特别关注的是抗凝剂、蛋白酶抑制剂、消化蛋白酶和新型排泄/分泌蛋白。大规模化学疗法仍然是钩虫控制策略的基础，尽管继续使用这些药物可能会导致疗效降低，并且已经观察到治疗失败。因此，需要创新方法，如接种疫苗；最近的研究已经在人类和动物模型中确定和/或评估了候选疫苗抗原。
