Molecular Parasitology Laboratory, Infectious Diseases Program, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens, Institute of Pathogen Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
Front Immunol. 2021 Feb 22;12:619776. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.619776. eCollection 2021.
Parasitic helminths, comprising the flatworms (tapeworms and flukes) and nematodes (roundworms), have plagued humans persistently over a considerable period of time. It is now known that the degree of exposure to these and other pathogens inversely correlates with the incidence of both T helper 1 (Th1)-mediated autoimmunity and Th2-mediated allergy. Accordingly, there has been recent increased interest in utilizing active helminth worm infections and helminth-derived products for the treatment of human autoimmune and inflammatory diseases and to alleviate disease severity. Indeed, there is an accumulating list of novel helminth derived molecules, including proteins, peptides, and microRNAs, that have been shown to exhibit therapeutic potential in a variety of disease models. Here we consider the blood-dwelling schistosome flukes, which have evolved subtle immune regulatory mechanisms that promote parasite survival but at the same time minimize host tissue immunopathology. We review and discuss the recent advances in using schistosome infection and schistosome-derived products as therapeutics to treat or mitigate human immune-related disorders, including allergic asthma, arthritis, colitis, diabetes, sepsis, cystitis, and cancer.
寄生虫性蠕虫，包括扁形动物（绦虫和吸虫）和线虫（蛔虫），在相当长的一段时间内一直困扰着人类。现在已知，暴露于这些和其他病原体的程度与 T 辅助 1（Th1）介导的自身免疫和 Th2 介导的过敏的发生率成反比。因此，最近人们越来越感兴趣地利用活性寄生虫蠕虫感染和寄生虫衍生产品来治疗人类自身免疫和炎症性疾病，并减轻疾病的严重程度。事实上，越来越多的新型寄生虫衍生分子，包括蛋白质、肽和 microRNAs，已被证明在多种疾病模型中具有治疗潜力。在这里，我们考虑血液居住的血吸虫吸虫，它们已经进化出微妙的免疫调节机制，促进寄生虫的生存，但同时最大限度地减少宿主组织免疫病理学。我们回顾和讨论了利用血吸虫感染和血吸虫衍生产品作为治疗剂来治疗或减轻人类免疫相关疾病的最新进展，包括过敏性哮喘、关节炎、结肠炎、糖尿病、败血症、膀胱炎和癌症。
