Recent In-Depth Insights of Nature-Based Anti-Worm Therapeutic Medications: Emerging Herbal Anthelmintics
Debarshi Kar Mahapatra, Cristóbal Noé Aguilar, A. K. Haghi in Applied Pharmaceutical Practice and Nutraceuticals, 2021
Helminth, in general the “worms” is a disease causing parasite (known as helminthiasis) that lives on or in the human or another animal. They survive by feeding on a living host by drawing nourishment from them. These worms may cause serious complications and also have the ability to multiply and invade the host immune system.1 Helminth infections are one of the most prevalent diseases and are recognized as a major problem in several developing and developed nations.2 The diseases caused by these helminths are chronic in nature, causes morbidity, and makes economic and social deprivation. At present, approximately 2 billion people are affected by intestinal nematodes. Depending on the species, worms are broadly classified as flukeworms, tapeworms, roundworms, and trematodes (Table 3.1). Several species of stomach worms and intestinal worms cause parasitic gastroenteritis which results in nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, weakness, and reduced weight gain. These helminths feed themselves from their host and consume all the essential nutrients, thereby causing the retarded growth and malnutrition of the host, particularly children.4 Other symptoms like reduced cognitive development, iron-deficiency anemia, and abdominal pains are the clinical manifesting features of severe helminth infections.5 These worms are long lived and the mode of transmission varies with the classes of worm. It may involve ingestion of eggs or larvae, penetration by larvae, bite of vectors (dogs or cats), etc.6Figure 3.1 describes the morphology of Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, and Ancylostoma duodenate.
Fenugreek in Management of Immunological, Infectious, and Malignant Disorders
Dilip Ghosh, Prasad Thakurdesai in Fenugreek, 2022
Helminthiasis or worm infections (e.g., roundworms, tapeworms, flukeworms) are among the most persistent health problems causing human debility, cognitive deficits, and sometimes death, with huge economic losses, especially in animal husbandry. Furthermore, helminthiasis is reported to exacerbate other severe infections such as tuberculosis and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (Ishnava and Konar 2020). Fenugreek was being explored in the last few years as a potential option for conventional anthelmintic agents to overcome significant challenges such as adverse effects and resistance (Lalthanpuii and Lalchhandama 2020).
Heterocyclic Drug Design and Development
Rohit Dutt, Anil K. Sharma, Raj K. Keservani, Vandana Garg in Promising Drug Molecules of Natural Origin, 2020
Helminths are the worm-like parasites which include flukes, roundworms, and tapeworms. These worms found in the intestine lead to a situation known as helminthiasis. Symptoms of helminthiasis include cough, wheeze, diarrhea, urticaria, etc. Drugs, which kill these worms are known as anthelmintics. Some commonly used anthelmintic agents include pyrantel, mebendazole, albendazole, ivermectin, and thiabendazole. A few anthelmintic agents are also obtained from plants. Such agents are mentioned in Table 9.4.
Helminthiases in North Korea: a neglected public health challenge
Published in Pathogens and Global Health, 2019
Helminthiasis in North Korea has received relatively little public health attention from the international community. Although important breakthroughs in data collection and investigation were made for the current status of nutrition, hepatitis B, and tuberculosis by researchers [13,17,18], no effort was realized on the subject of helminthiasis. However, it should be noted that helminthiasis is associated with or can aggravate other health problems, such as tuberculosis, malaria, HIV/AIDS, wasting, and anemia [19–24], which are prevalent in North Korea [5]. In this regard, it is essential for public health professionals working in North Korea to have knowledge about the current status of helminthiasis, since it would provide the rationale for the strategy on other important public health issues such as malaria and malnutrition in North Korea. This review, therefore, aims to analyze the current burden of helminthiasis in North Korea. In particular, the author will highlight the findings of helminthic cases both in North Korean residents and refugees (defectors) so that we can assess the differences in the epidemiologic conditions between the two populations.
Chemical composition and broad-spectrum anthelmintic activity of a cultivar of toothache plant, Acmella oleracea, from Mizoram, India
Published in Pharmaceutical Biology, 2020
Pawi Bawitlung Lalthanpuii, Kholhring Lalchhandama
Helminthiases are among the neglected tropical diseases that attract less attention than other infections chiefly because their immediate symptoms are not life-threatening. They are the major cause of morbidity in humans and decreased productivity in veterinary livestock. In fact, they are now the most prevalent infectious diseases in humans. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports in 2019 that soil-transmitted helminths infect 1.5 billion people (WHO 2019a), while schistosomiases alone accounts for 220 million cases (WHO 2019b), thereby surpassing malaria (at 219 million cases) as the most prevalent infection. It is also vitally crucial to admit that the situation due to helminthiasis is exacerbated by a pervasive anthelmintic resistance in major helminths to all available anthelmintic drugs. The need for improvements of these drugs and alternative sources of drugs is utterly compelling (Becker et al. 2018; Schulz et al. 2018).
Historical analysis of inverse correlation between soil-transmitted helminthiasis and pancreatic cancer
Published in Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, 2021
Cursory inspection of recent global distribution maps of estimated STH and PC incidence rates shows an inverse correlation (Figures 1 and 2).10,11 An illustrative example is India, which currently has one of the lowest incidence and mortality rates of PC worldwide. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) places India’s PC age-standardized mortality rates (ASR) at 0.82 (2018).12 Data published over the past decade shows that many states in India have an extremely high STH infection rate. More than 50% STH prevalence was found in the states of Assam and Andhra Pradesh, with Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Manipur, Maharashtra, and Puducherry reporting a prevalence >20%.13 Helminthiasis in India is perpetuated by open defecation practices, lack of footwear, and lack of adequate sanitation and sewage removal and treatment.13,14 The helminthiasis-PC hypothesis suggests that India’s high STH rate symbiotically provides protection against PC via a form of immune modulation.
Related Knowledge Centers
- Cestoda
- Gastrointestinal Tract
- Parasitism
- Pharmaceutical Industry
- Parasitic Worm
- Host
- Soil-Transmitted Helminthiasis
- Schistosomiasis
- Neglected Tropical Diseases
- London Declaration On Neglected Tropical Diseases