Abstract
Helminths are a major health concern as over one billion people are infected worldwide and, despite the multiple efforts made, there is still no effective human vaccine against them. The most important drugs used nowadays to control helminth infections belong to the benzimidazoles, imidazothiazoles (levamisole) and macrocyclic lactones (avermectins and milbemycins) families. However, in the last 20 years, many publications have revealed increasing anthelmintic resistance in livestock which is both an economical and a potential health problem, even though very few have reported similar findings in human populations. To deal with this worrying limitation of anthelmintic drugs, alternative treatments based on plant extracts or probiotics have been developed. Probiotics are defined by the Food and Agriculture Organization as live microorganisms, which, when consumed in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit to the host. It has been proven that probiotic microbes have the ability to exert an immunomodulatory effect both at the mucosa and the systemic level. The immune response against gastrointestinal helminths is characterized as a type 2 response, with high IgE levels, increased numbers and/or activity of Th2 cells, type 2 innate lymphoid cells, eosinophils, basophils, mast cells, and alternatively activated macrophages. The oral administration of probiotics may contribute to controlling gastrointestinal helminth infections since it has been demonstrated that these microorganisms stimulate dendritic cells to elicit a type 2 or regulatory immune response, among other effects on the host immune system. Here we review the current knowledge about the use of probiotic bacteria as anthelmintic therapy or as a complement to traditional anthelmintic treatments. Considering all research papers reviewed, we may conclude that the effect generated by probiotics on helminth infection depends not only on the parasite species, their stage and localization but also on the administration scheme.
Highlights
Helminths have co-evolved with mammals and infect over one billion people worldwide, mostly in non-industrialized countries (Hotez et al, 2008)
ML were decreased by 70, 65 and 24% by live bacteria, dead bacteria, and culture supernatant, respectively (Bautista-Garfias et al, 2001). These results show that, in the response against T. spiralis, the immune mechanisms triggered by probiotics components are enough to induce the observed effects
This work shows that Lacticaseibacillus spp. administration can partially reduce parasite burden, and that the effect is stronger in the presence of IL4
Summary
Helminths have co-evolved with mammals and infect over one billion people worldwide, mostly in non-industrialized countries (Hotez et al, 2008). The development of vaccines providing long-term protection against helminths has been hampered by multiple life cycle stages, antigenic variation between them, Probiotics as Anthelmintic Treatments evasion mechanisms and immunomodulation strategies (Bobardt et al, 2020; Drurey et al, 2020). Uncomplete drug treatment schemes, high rates of post-treatments reinfections and the rise of anthelmintic resistance makes a dangerous combo for the increase of helminth infections among livestock with the consequent impact on human health (Hotez et al, 2008). Probiotics may interfere with the physiology of parasites in the gut Their secreted products may have anthelmintic effects and can reduce the virulence of many parasites and for this reason probiotics may be an integral part of helminth parasite control strategies (Berrilli et al, 2012). We review the current knowledge about the use of probiotic bacteria as anthelmintic therapy or as a complement to traditional anthelmintic treatments
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