Whipworm

Some bugs are good for our health, and a pig parasite called the whipworm appears to be one of them. ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

Examination of his intestines noted eggs of Trichuris trichiuria, or whipworm, which is a parasite that causes abdominal pain and anemia. ❋ Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier (2000)

(PhysOrg. com) -- Parasites in the gut such as whipworm have an essential role in developing a healthy immune system, scientists have found. ❋ Unknown (2010)

He started doing research, heard theories that the immune system may play a role in autism, and came across the work on whipworm eggs and Crohn's disease. ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

Clinical trials using whipworm therapy have been run or are planned for the following conditions: ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

This type of treatment is known as helminthic treatment, or more specifically TSO, from the Latin name for whipworm eggs: Trichuris Suis Ova. ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

"It looks like the helminth the parasite rebalances the immune system," says Bobby Sandage , chief executive of Burlington, Mass.-based Coronado Biosciences, which is finishing up an early-stage clinical trial of whipworm to treat Crohn's disease. ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

The whipworm treatment was born from a theory known as the hygiene hypothesis, which essentially says our environment has become too clean. ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

A study recently published in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal suggested the pig parasite Trichuris suis ova whipworm, which lives in the host's intestine, is effective in treating MS symptoms. ❋ Sten Stovall (2011)

The introduction of the whipworm appears to spur the body to produce more of a different type of helpful immune cell—T2 helper cytokines—as a defense against the worms. ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

Coronado Biosciences Patients and study participants consume microscopic whipworm eggs, above left, which hatch into worms, right, in the intestines. ❋ Shirley S. Wang (2012)

Parasites like hookworm and whipworm make it hard for children to learn in school; all it takes is a dose of antiwhipworm medicine to make some slow children bright again. ❋ Carl Zimmer (2009)

Over 1.4 billion people carry the snakelike roundworm Ascaris lumbricoides in their intestines; almost 1.3 billion carry blood-sucking hookworms; 1 billion have whipworm. ❋ Carl Zimmer (2009)

• Delicious beverage made of pig whipworm eggs is also good for you! ❋ Unknown (2007)