Worming Out

In some parts of the world, a refreshing dip in a lake can carry a heavy cost, if the water is contaminated with parasites. Schistosomiasis is a tropical disease spread by contact with fresh water containing parasitic worms, such as the Schistosoma mansoni (pictured, left). Treatment is limited to one anti-worm drug, and there's a pressing need for new ways to tackle this parasite. A new study tested whether a particular enzyme in the worm might be a potential vulnerability to target. They treated adult and juvenile worms with MC3935, a drug that inhibits the behaviour of an enzyme usually involved in the restructuring of DNA. Worms treated with the drug were severely damaged (right), and died within four days. The treatment disrupted much of the usual function of the parasite, and could be the basis for a new, specific drug to help patients with this debilitating condition.

Written by Anthony Lewis

Anthony Lewis

Writer

Ant was the web editor in the early days of BPoD, and has since worked with the UK’s top science organisations as a writer and multimedia producer. He now splits his time between freelance work and managing multimedia at The Lancet.

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• Image adapted from work by Vitor Coutinho Carneiro and colleagues
• Instituto de Bioquímica Médica Leopoldo de Meis, Programa de Biologia Molecular e Biotecnologia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Image originally published under a Creative Commons Licence (BY 4.0)
• Published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, July 2020