It was possible to explain why parasitic worms only attack certain people and animals. It turned out that the Muc5ac protein contained in the intestinal mucus does not help the parasites, informs the EurekAlert website.
Parasitic worms living in the digestive tract are an important cause of disease and death among the approximately XNUMX billion people infected with them, especially in Third World countries. In addition, they attack farm and domestic animals.
However, worms do not always manage to establish themselves in the intestine of a potential host. Scientists from the University of Manchester have found that a substance that is toxic to worms is present in the mucus that covers the intestines of humans and animals.
Intestinal mucus is a complex mixture of salt, water and sugar-related proteins – mucins.
The researchers bred mice that were infected with the mouse whipworm (Trichuris muris), closely related to the human whipworm (Trichuris trichiura).
It turned out that rodents that secreted more mucus containing large amounts of Muc5ac mucin were able to get rid of the parasites. Mice that did not produce Muc5ac due to the lack of the appropriate gene were unable to get rid of the worms – even though they were able to vigorously react against the parasites.
In addition to the whipworm, the Muc5ac protein also harms other parasitic worms – such as duodenal hookworm and intestinal nematodes. This discovery could lead to the development of new treatments. (PAP)