Abstract
Schistosomiasis is among the most prevalent human parasitic diseases, affecting more than 200 million people in the developing world [1]. Indeed, some estimates suggest the global disease-associated disability resulting from schistosomiasis may reach levels on par with global killers including malaria, tuberculosis, or HIV/AIDS [2], [3]. The causative agents of this disease are flatworms (Schistosoma or blood flukes) that feed on blood in the veins surrounding the host's intestine or bladder. These worms produce hundreds to thousands of eggs per day, many of which lodge in host tissues and cause diverse pathologies, including hepatic fibrosis, splenomegaly, and in some cases, perhaps cancer. Despite the grim statistics, only a single therapeutic agent (praziquantel) is currently used to treat schistosome infection. With the looming possibility that praziquantel-resistant Schistosoma strains could arise, an urgent need exists to identify novel therapeutic agents to combat these parasites.
Highlights
Schistosomiasis is among the most prevalent human parasitic diseases, affecting more than 200 million people in the developing world [1]
Highlighting the potential for planarians to aid in our understanding of schistosome reproduction, a study of planarian spermatogenesis identified genes specific to flatworms that were required for normal planarian sperm production [28]
These cells were morphologically similar to neoblasts and shared their ability to produce differentiated cell types, such as muscle and intestine. These cells expressed numerous genes known to regulate neoblasts in planarians. It is not clear what role these cells play in the parasite; the observation that schistosomes can regenerate damaged tissues following sublethal doses of praziquantel [35] suggests that these stem cells may play a pivotal role, in longevity, but in numerous facets of the parasite’s biology
Summary
Schistosomiasis is among the most prevalent human parasitic diseases, affecting more than 200 million people in the developing world [1]. The causative agents of this disease are flatworms (Schistosoma or blood flukes) that feed on blood in the veins surrounding the host’s intestine or bladder. These worms produce hundreds to thousands of eggs per day, many of which lodge in host tissues and cause diverse pathologies, including hepatic fibrosis, splenomegaly, and in some cases, perhaps cancer. Only a single therapeutic agent (praziquantel) is currently used to treat schistosome infection. With the looming possibility that praziquantel-resistant Schistosoma strains could arise, an urgent need exists to identify novel therapeutic agents to combat these parasites
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