New research from the University of California, Riverside suggests mammals have regulatory systems in place that lower the body's immune response to a parasitic infection, such as hookworm, instead of killing the parasite.
By infecting mice with hookworms, they discovered mice that lacked the protein RELMalpha killed the worms but did not survive themselves.
When such genetically deficient mice were given a low dose of worms, the mice managed to kill the worms faster but also incurred damage to their bodies. Were the mice to have RELMalpha, the researchers believe their bodies would have been better protected.
RELMalpha is the equivalent of the protein resistin, which is found in humans. Hookworms infect roughly 2 billion humans worldwide.
"If you had a choice between having a parasite in your body or you dying from trying to kill it, you would choose to have the parasite live in your body," said Meera Nair, PhD, whose lab led the research. '"Worm parasites are exceptionally good at that. They live with us for long periods without causing much damage."
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