Weight loss 'is body's way of fighting off gut worms'

Weight loss following infection with intestinal worms is the body's way of fighting off the parasites, University of Manchester researchers have said.

The immune system hijacks a hormone that controls when to stop eating, their study of mice suggests.

This then triggers the type of immune response needed to expel the worms from the gut, PLOS Pathogens reports.

The finding could lead to new ways to treat people with intestinal worms, researchers say.

Researchers first saw a potential link when they were measuring levels of a hormone called cholecystokinin in volunteers after they had been fed a meal.

One man had incredibly high levels and on further investigation it was found he had an intestinal worm infection he had picked up on holiday.

Joining forces with a team specialising in gut worm infections the researchers did a study in mice infected with a worm called Trichinella spiralis.

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Naturally you would think that if you are losing weight you are going to have less energy to fight off infection.”

Dr John WorthingtonUniversity of Manchester

They found that immune cells called T-cells responded to the worm infection by driving up levels of cholecystokinin.

This increase has a knock-on effect of driving down another hunger hormone, leptin, which influences what type of immune response the body needs to produce.

When they artificially added leptin back into the infected mice, the immune system mounted the wrong response and the intestinal worms remained in the gut for longer.

Global problem

Nearly one in every four of the world's population are infected with gastrointestinal parasites.

It has long been known that these infections often result in a period of reduced appetite and weight loss but why or how this happens was not understood.

Study author Dr John Worthington said the researchers had looked at only one type of parasitic worm but were now doing tests to see if the same response was produced in response to other worms.

"Naturally you would think that if you are losing weight you are going to have less energy to fight off infection," he said.

"This does the opposite of what you would expect."

Dr Worthington added that eventually they would be looking at whether different treatment or nutrition strategies could be designed to boost this immune effect in people affected with intestinal worms.

Dr Mark Robinson, lecturer in parasite proteomics at Queen's University Belfast, said that diseases of humans and animals caused by parasitic worms were among the most widespread and economically devastating throughout the world and drug resistance was becoming a problem.

"The best way to combat worm infections in the future will be the development of vaccines which represent safer, more environmentally-friendly, alternatives to drugs," he said.

"At present, vaccine development is hampered by a lack of basic understanding of how parasitic worms interact with, and influence, our immune system, so research in this area will hope

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Mum's testing affects HPV jab uptake, says survey

A mother's attitude towards cervical cancer screening influences decisions to vaccinate daughters against the cancer, researchers in Manchester say.

Data from 117,000 girls was analysed.

Teenagers were at least three times more likely to have had the HPV vaccination if their mothers had been tested in the past five years.

The study, in the European Journal of Cancer, also showed daughters were more likely to have been vaccinated if their mothers received an abnormal result.

The cervical cancer vaccine was introduced in the UK in 2008 and is offered to girls with parental consent in their second year of secondary school with catch-up campaigns in older teenagers.

It provides immunity to the sexually transmitted infection responsible for most cases of cervical cancer.

New finding

The team from the University of Manchester linked cervical screening records and HPV vaccination records in the north-east of England by address.

It is the first time such a link has been studied in the UK.

They found that the uptake of HPV vaccination among 12-13-year-olds in those whose mothers had never been screened for cervical cancer was 58%.

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"It shows there is a link within families and that targeting both mothers and daughters may have an influence on uptake of prevention programmes”

Angela SpencerUniversity of Manchester researcher

In the same age group whose mothers had been screened for cervical cancer in the past five years, the uptake was almost 84%.

Further analysis showed mothers who had personally decided to stop screening were less likely to have vaccinated their daughters than those who had stopped for medical reasons.

The researchers are now planning to carry out in-depth interviews. They want to out what influences a mother's decision to give consent for her daughter to be vaccinated and whether socio-economic factors play a part.

But they pointed out that there were important public health implications to the findings.

They said not only are teenagers of mothers not engaging with screening less likely to be vaccinated they are also less likely to engage with screening themselves when they get older, putting them at risk.

And maintaining high HPV vaccine coverage is extremely important because figures show cervical screening coverage is declining among 25-29-year-olds with some evidence of increasing cancer incidence at younger ages, they pointed out.

Family pattern

Research assistant Angela Spencer said the results suggest that a mother's attitudes and behaviour with respect to her own cervical screening attendance or to preventive programmes in general, are important determinants in her decision to vaccinate her daughter, particularly at younger ages.

She added: "It shows there is a link within families and that targeting both mothers and daughters may have an influence on uptake of prevention programmes."

Dr Claire Knight, Cancer Research UK's health information manager, said: "HPV vaccination and screening are the best ways of reducing the risk of cervical cancer.

"This study adds to our knowledge about the factors that affect vaccination behaviour, including the influence of family and friends.

"It's important to ensure all women understand the importance of HPV vaccination and cervical screening and their role in saving lives."

READMORE:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20983325

Pill-sized scanner images gullet

Doctors have made a pill-sized device that can take detailed microscopic images of inside the gullet.

It is hoped the US technology could become an easier way of screening people for a condition called Barrett's oesophagus, which can lead to cancer.

Unlike current imaging techniques, the device can be used while the patient is conscious and takes only a few minutes.

The device has been tested in a small number of patients so far, Nature Medicine reports.

Although researchers at Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston say the device has potentially wide application, it could be particularly useful for Barrett's oesophagus where many people do not realise they have it, but there is no easy way to screen for it.

In those with the condition, the cells in the lower gullet become abnormal due to chronic acid reflux, which puts them at a higher risk of developing cancer of the oesophagus.

Doctors can screen those at risk using an endoscope - a flexible tube containing a tiny video camera - but this is unpleasant and usually has to be done under sedation.

Tiny capsule

The new device is contained in a capsule about the size of a multivitamin pill connected by a thin wire.

Within the capsule is a rapidly rotating laser tip which emits infrared light that is then reflected back from the lining of the oesophagus.

When the patient swallows the capsule it is carried down the oesophagus in the same way any piece of food would be then once it reaches the stomach it can be pulled back out using the wire.The image doctors see on the screen is a 3D landscape showing far more microscopic detail than can be seen with endoscopy.

Images are taken the whole time the device is moving up and down the gullet and the whole process takes a matter of minutes.

Testing the equipment in six patients known to have Barrett's oesophagus and seven healthy volunteers, the researchers said the images clearly showed the cellular changes that occur in those with the condition.

'Best pictures'

Prof Gary Tearney, one of the research collaborators, said the technology is cheaper than endoscopy and avoids the need for sedation, specialised equipment or special training.

And the microscopic detail shown in the images means a biopsy can be avoided.

"The images produced have been some of the best we have seen of the oesophagus," says Prof Tearne, a professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School.

"We originally were concerned that we might miss a lot of data because of the small size of the capsule, but we were surprised to find that, once the pill has been swallowed, it is firmly 'grasped' by the oesophagus, allowing complete microscopic imaging of the entire wall."

Prof Tearney added that the device could help doctors work out who is at risk and detect cancers at potentially more treatable stage.

Prof Rebecca Fitzgerald, a specialist on Barrett's oesophagus at the Cambridge Cancer Centre, said: "It is elegant technology. The downside is that you will have to endoscope anyone with suspected Barrett's as you will have no way of sampling and detecting dysplasia [abnormalities] with this technology."

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Fast-food 'linked to childhood asthma and eczema'

Eating fast food three times a week may lead to asthma and eczema in children, say researchers who have looked at global disease and dietary patterns.

Data from more than 500,000 children in more than 50 countries suggests poor diet may be to blame for rising levels of these allergy-related conditions.

Those who ate fast food, such as take-away burgers, risked severe asthma, eczema and itchy, watery eyes.

Eating plenty of fruit appears to be protective, Thorax journal reports.

Fast food often contains high levels of saturated- and trans-fatty acids, which are known to affect immunity, while fruit is rich in antioxidants and other beneficial compounds, say the researchers.

In the study, children in their early teens who ate three or more weekly servings of fast food had a 39% increased risk of severe asthma.

Six- and seven-year-olds had a 27% increased risk.

Eating three or more portions of fruit a week cut the risk of severe asthma, eczema and rhinoconjunctivitis by between 11% and 14%.

The study authors, Prof Innes Asher, from the University of Auckland in New Zealand, and Prof Hywel Williams, from the University of Nottingham in the UK, said: "If the associations between fast foods and the symptom prevalence of asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis and eczema is causal, then the findings have major public health significance owing to the rising consumption of fast foods globally."

Generally, people with asthma do not have to follow a special diet.

In some cases, certain foods, such as cow's milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, yeast products, nuts, and some food colourings and preservatives, can make symptoms worse.

Malayka Rahman of Asthma UK, said research suggests that a person's diet may contribute to their risk of developing asthma and that eating healthily may have a beneficial effect.

"Evidence suggests that the vitamins and antioxidants found in fresh fruit and vegetables have a beneficial effect on asthma therefore Asthma UK advises people with asthma to eat a healthy, balanced diet including five portions of fruit or vegetables every day, fish more than twice a week, and pulses more than once a week."

READMORE:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21009654