Parasitic Helminths: Drug Resistance, Control and Immune Evasion
A special issue of Pathogens (ISSN 2076-0817). This special issue belongs to the section "Parasitic Pathogens".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 October 2023) | Viewed by 1300
Special Issue Editors
Interests: helminth; parasite; host–parasite interaction; drug resistance; control
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Parasite helminths are globally distributed and highly prevalent metazoan pathogens, with billions of individuals infected worldwide with diseases such as schistosomiasis or lymphatic filariasis. They are also responsible for important veterinary diseases such as gastrointestinal helminthiasis and dirofilariasis, respectively, in livestock and companion animals, leading to significant economic losses. Treatment and control of helminthiasis are limited and rely on a few anthelmintic classes for which mass drug administration has already led to widespread drug resistance in nematodes, and threats extend to trematodes and cestodes. No recombinant vaccines are available. Alternative treatment strategies are urgently needed. In this context, understanding the essential physiological and developmental processes of helminth biology is crucial to the identification of novel means to control these parasites.
Some helminths live for years in their host due to their ability to evade the host immune system and survive under drug pressure. Schistosoma spp. and other helminths release excreted/secreted products that have immunomodulatory properties, contributing to parasite-parasite and host–parasite communication. Nematodes such as Haemonchus or Dirofilaria have developed mechanisms of resistance to anthelmintics, threatening current control of these important veterinary parasites. Unravelling the molecular mechanisms and cellular pathways by which the parasites either evade the host immune system or survive drug pressure could provide new strategies to combat helminthiasis.
I invite colleagues investigating any of these mechanisms in helminths to submit their manuscripts to this Special Issue in the form of original research and reviews.
Dr. Thavy Long
Prof. Dr. Timothy G. Geary
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- helminth
- parasite
- host–parasite interaction
- drug resistance
- control
