The key to preventing asthma and reducing allergies may lie in an unexpected source: parasitic
worms. Researchers at Trinity College Dublin have managed to cure experimental asthma in the lab
using a live worm, the first time a human parasite has been used for this purpose. Dr Padraic Fallon
from the Department of Biochemistry at Trinity College Dublin will present these findings at the BA
Festival of Science on Monday 5 September.

The UK and Ireland are experiencing an asthma epidemic and have some of the highest rates of asthma
in the world and the prevalence of allergic diseases has more than doubled over the last two or
three decades in the developed world. This is particularly marked in Irish schoolchildren, with just
under a third of children aged 13-14 showing symptoms of asthma.

‘The reasons for the dramatic recent increase in allergic diseases are complex,' says Dr Fallon. ‘We
believe a major factor is the reduction in parasitic worms, and bacterial or viral infections, in
modern ‘clean' societies. This is the often quoted: “If your kids play in dirt they will not get
asthma”.'

Studies have shown that people in developing countries have fewer allergies. In a study in Gabon,
Africa schoolchildren that were infected with worms had lower allergic responses to house dust mites
than children with no worms. When the children had their worms removed by drugs they then developed
increased allergic responses.

The particular worm in question, the schistosome, is the cause of Bilharzia. As the worms feed on
red blood cells and dissolved nutrients such as sugars and amino acids, they can