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Human gastrointestinal nematode infections: are new control methods required?
Author(s) -
Stepek Gillian,
Buttle David J.,
Duce Ian R.,
Behnke Jerzy M.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
international journal of experimental pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.671
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1365-2613
pISSN - 0959-9673
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2613.2006.00495.x
Subject(s) - nematode , sanitation , population , malnutrition , biology , environmental health , anthelmintic , medicine , veterinary medicine , ecology , pathology
Summary Gastrointestinal (GI) nematode infections affect 50% of the human population worldwide, and cause great morbidity as well as hundreds of thousands of deaths. Despite modern medical practices, the proportion of the population infected with GI nematodes is not falling. This is due to a number of factors, the most important being the lack of good healthcare, sanitation and health education in many developing countries. A relatively new problem is the development of resistance to the small number of drugs available to treat GI nematode infections. Here we review the most important parasitic GI nematodes and the methods available to control them. In addition, we discuss the current status of new anthelmintic treatments, particularly the plant cysteine proteinases from various sources of latex‐bearing plants and fruits.