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. 2016 Sep 15;10(9):e0004944.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004944. eCollection 2016 Sep.

The Hygiene Hypothesis and Its Inconvenient Truths about Helminth Infections

Neima Briggs  1   2   3 , Jill Weatherhead  3 , K Jagannadha Sastry  1   2 , Peter J Hotez  3   4   5   6
Affiliations

The Hygiene Hypothesis and Its Inconvenient Truths about Helminth Infections

Neima Briggs et al. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. .

Abstract

Current iterations of the hygiene hypothesis suggest an adaptive role for helminth parasites in shaping the proper maturation of the immune system. However, aspects of this hypothesis are based on assumptions that may not fully account for realities about human helminth infections. Such realities include evidence of causal associations between helminth infections and asthma or inflammatory bowel disease as well as the fact that helminth infections remain widespread in the United States, especially among populations at greatest risk for inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.

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Conflict of interest statement

PJH is lead investigator on a vaccine against hookworm and schistosomiasis in clinical trials as well as vaccines against other helminths and other neglected tropical diseases in development.

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