The Scientist Who's Waging A War On Worms

For nearly 40 years, Hotez has crusaded against parasitic worms, a sometimes lonely job. They affect nearly 1.5 billion people on the planet, making children too sick to go to school and adults too sick to work. But there's been a lack of funding and interest for research into treatments.

 Types of Worms and Parasites that Live in Humans

There are literally thousands of different types of worms in the animal kingdom. They generally have long, slender bodies with no separate limbs. Worms live in a variety of habitats: some worms live in the earth such as earthworms, others live in water such as the leeches and others live in a human host such as tapeworms. The worms that live in humans or in animals are known as parasites. Parasites always live in or on their host. They eat the food supplies of their host and cause a wide range of conditions and symptoms that range from mild to severe.

They might sound gross, but intestinal worms can actually be good for you

Intestinal worms are properly called “helminths,” which most dictionaries will tell you are parasites. Exploiting their hosts, draining resources, sucking the life out of the body – that’s what parasites do, by definition. Indeed, many helminths, including the porcine tapeworm and the human hookworm, are known to cause disease and even death in the human population. Parasitic worms are still a big problem in some parts of the world. But for decades, results coming out of lab after lab have shown that some kinds of helminths can be extremely beneficial to their host, and aren’t parasites at all.

Worm therapy: Why parasites may be good for you

Early trials suggest a host of allergies and autoimmune ailments could be treated with worm therapy, or infection with live worm-like parasites. But will it ever reach the clinic?

America’s Never-Ending Battle Against Flesh-Eating Worms

Inside the U.S. and Panama’s long-running collaboration to rid an entire continent of a deadly disease.

Eat Your Worms: The Upside Of Parasites

For years evidence has been mounting that intestinal parasites can actually be a good thing for people with inflammatory bowel disease because certain parasitic worms seem to help the intestine heal.

Health check: the low-down on ‘worms’ and how to get rid of them

In developing countries with poor sanitation, the most common intestinal worms are transmitted through contaminated soil. The main culprits belong to the roundworm subgroup and include threadworm, large roundworms, whipworms and hookworms. In Australia, threadworm (or pinworm) is the most common intestinal worm. These worms hatch out of eggs swallowed by the host. But don’t worry: they’re relatively harmless and easily treated.

The worms that invade your brain

Once you consume them, they can move throughout your body -- your eyes, your tissues and most commonly your brain. They leave doctors puzzled in their wake as they migrate and settle to feed on the body they're invading; a classic parasite, but this one can get into your head.

Worms

New published information reveals that intestinal worm infections rank among the most common afflictions of people living in extreme poverty. The numbers are quite astonishing. More than 800 million people are currently believed to harbor Ascaris roundworms in their gastrointestinal tract, while around 450 million people are infected with either hookworms or Trichuris whipworms.

Worms "N" Us: A look at 8 parasitic worms that live in humans

Take a trip through Scientific American's Worm Gallery and meet the charming, slinky creatures that turn your innards into their home sweet home

Worms: An Overview.

Many of the parasitic worms of terrestrial animals have larval stages in fresh water, and these can be encountered in water samples collected from lakes and ponds. The three worm phyla of most interest to freshwater biologists are presented below. Additionally, the category "Parasitic" is included, which acknowledges the immense impact of worm parasites upon human and other animal communities.

Health check: the low-down on ‘worms’ and how to get rid of them

Intestinal worms (or helminths) are multicellular parasites that live inside the gut. When mature, they can generally be seen with the naked eye. In developing countries with poor sanitation, the most common intestinal worms are transmitted through contaminated soil. The main culprits belong to the roundworm subgroup and include threadworm, large roundworms, whipworms and hookworms.

Soil-transmitted helminth infections

The main species that infect people are the roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides), the whipworm (Trichuris trichiura) and hookworms (Necator americanus and Ancylostoma duodenale). These STH species are normally addressed as a group because they need similar diagnostic procedures and respond to the same medicines. Strongyloides stercoralis is an intestinal helminth with peculiar characteristics: the parasite requires different diagnostic methods than other soil-transmitted helminthiases, and for this reason is frequently not identified. In addition, the parasite is not sensitive to albendazole or mebendazole and therefore not impacted by l

Worms People Can Get

Some worms that people get can grow to be really big --more than 3 feet long. Others are tiny. The worst parasitic worms are usually found in warm tropical or subtropical parts of the world, but some worms are common in other places, too. Anyone can get worms.