Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Systems and Integrative Neuroscience Group, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, United States.
Med Hypotheses. 2011 Oct;77(4):494-504. doi: 10.1016/j.mehy.2011.06.019. Epub 2011 Jul 7.
A wide range of hyperimmune-associated diseases plague post-industrial society, with a prevalence and impact that is staggering. Strong evidence points towards a loss of helminths from the ecosystem of the human body (the human biome) as the most important factor in this epidemic. Helminths, intestinal worms which are largely eradicated by elements of post-industrial culture including toilets and water treatment facilities, have an otherwise ubiquitous presence in vertebrates, and have co-evolved with the immune system. Not only do helminths discourage allergic and autoimmune reactions by diverting the immune system away from these pathologic processes and stimulating host regulatory networks, helminths release a variety of factors which down-modulate the immune system. A comprehensive view of hyperimmune-related disease based on studies in immunology, parasitology, evolutionary biology, epidemiology, and neurobiology indicates that the effects of biome depletion may not yet be fully realized, and may have an unexpectedly broad impact on many areas of human biology, including cognition. Fortunately, colonization with helminths results in a cure of numerous autoimmune and allergic diseases in laboratory rodents, and clinical studies in humans have indicated their utility for treatment of both multiple sclerosis and inflammatory bowel disease. Based on these considerations, commitment of considerable resources toward understanding the effects of "biome depletion" and systematically evaluating the most effective approach toward biome reconstitution is strongly encouraged.
广泛的超敏相关疾病困扰着后工业化社会，其流行程度和影响令人震惊。强有力的证据表明，人体生态系统（人类生物群落）中寄生虫的丧失是这一流行病的最重要因素。寄生虫是肠道蠕虫，它们在很大程度上被后工业化文化的元素（包括厕所和水处理设施）根除，在脊椎动物中普遍存在，并与免疫系统共同进化。寄生虫不仅通过将免疫系统从这些病理过程中转移开来并刺激宿主调节网络来抑制过敏和自身免疫反应，还释放出各种下调免疫系统的因子。基于免疫学、寄生虫学、进化生物学、流行病学和神经生物学的研究对与超敏相关的疾病进行的全面观察表明，生物群落耗竭的影响可能尚未完全显现，并且可能对人类生物学的许多领域产生出乎意料的广泛影响，包括认知。幸运的是，寄生虫的定植导致实验室啮齿动物的许多自身免疫和过敏疾病得到治愈，并且人类的临床研究表明它们对多发性硬化症和炎症性肠病的治疗有效。基于这些考虑，强烈鼓励投入大量资源来理解“生物群落耗竭”的影响，并系统地评估最有效的生物群落重建方法。
