We can learn a lot from the world of parasites, which in general also includes bacteria, viruses and fungi. The medical profession has long focused on bacteria and viruses more-so than parasitic protozoa partly due to the fact of how causes of disease have traditionally been identified. A pathogen had to be shown to be associated with a particular disease. In this respect it had to be isolated, grown in a pure culture, and inoculated into a host which would then produce the disease. The organism in the host also had to be shown to be the pathogen that the host was inoculated with. Bacteria and viruses were easily characterized as disease causing agents within these set of rules, but protozoa, despite their ability to cause severe disease, never really fell easily into this category. Protozoa have an extremely complex process not only in terms of the biological sense but also in terms of survival and the means in which they infect their hosts. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘hookworm’
Disease-causing agents – a potential source of medicine?
Sunday, February 14th, 2010Helping the poorest of the poor fight disease
Sunday, December 20th, 2009
Sufferers of sleeping sickness
Imagine living day to day in a place plagued by constant poverty and unimaginable disease. AIDS, African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), dracunculiasis (guinea worm disease), malaria, nodding syndrome, and onchocerciasis (river blindness) are some of the most common diseases the people of southern Sudan have to live in constant fear of. Although some of the diseases widespread in southern Sudan such as AIDS and malaria are also found elsewhere, southern Sudan is also plagued by some of the more exotic diseases such as guinea worm disease, nodding syndrome, river blindness, and sleeping sickness that are almost entirely local to Sudan and neighboring African countries. (more…)