The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation Platforms
Throughout history, parasites and parasitic diseases have been humankind’s constant companions, as evidenced by the findings of tapeworm eggs in ancient, mummified remains. Helminths are responsible for causing severe, long-term, and debilitating infectious diseases worldwide, especially affecting e...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/7/1708 |
| _version_ | 1827732294277791744 |
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| author | Smita Sutrave Martin Heinrich Richter |
| author_facet | Smita Sutrave Martin Heinrich Richter |
| author_sort | Smita Sutrave |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Throughout history, parasites and parasitic diseases have been humankind’s constant companions, as evidenced by the findings of tapeworm eggs in ancient, mummified remains. Helminths are responsible for causing severe, long-term, and debilitating infectious diseases worldwide, especially affecting economically challenged nations due to prevailing deficits in access to sanitation, proper hygiene practices, and healthcare infrastructure. Socio-ecological drivers, such as poverty, migration, and climate change, continue to contribute to parasites and their disease vectors being spread beyond known endemic zones. The study of parasitic diseases has had a fair amount of success leading to the development of new chemotherapeutic agents and the implementation of parasite eradication programs. However, further progress in this direction has been hampered by the challenges of culturing some of these parasites in in vitro systems for efficient availability, basic life cycle, infection studies, and effectiveness of novel treatment strategies. The complexity of the existing models varies widely, depending on the parasite and its life cycle, ranging from basic culture methods to advanced 3D systems. This review aims to highlight the research conducted so far in culturing and maintaining parasites in an in vitro setting, thereby contributing to a better understanding of pathogenicity and generating new insights into their lifecycles in the hopes of leading to effective treatments and prevention strategies. This work is the first comprehensive outline of existing in vitro models for highly transmissible helminth diseases causing severe morbidity and mortality in humans globally. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:48:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-54b5856518a348ef87e3900bc6dc33aa |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:48:44Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj.art-54b5856518a348ef87e3900bc6dc33aa2023-11-18T20:35:20ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072023-06-01117170810.3390/microorganisms11071708The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation PlatformsSmita Sutrave0Martin Heinrich Richter1Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Max-Dohrn-Str. 8–10, 10589 Berlin, GermanyDepartment of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Max-Dohrn-Str. 8–10, 10589 Berlin, GermanyThroughout history, parasites and parasitic diseases have been humankind’s constant companions, as evidenced by the findings of tapeworm eggs in ancient, mummified remains. Helminths are responsible for causing severe, long-term, and debilitating infectious diseases worldwide, especially affecting economically challenged nations due to prevailing deficits in access to sanitation, proper hygiene practices, and healthcare infrastructure. Socio-ecological drivers, such as poverty, migration, and climate change, continue to contribute to parasites and their disease vectors being spread beyond known endemic zones. The study of parasitic diseases has had a fair amount of success leading to the development of new chemotherapeutic agents and the implementation of parasite eradication programs. However, further progress in this direction has been hampered by the challenges of culturing some of these parasites in in vitro systems for efficient availability, basic life cycle, infection studies, and effectiveness of novel treatment strategies. The complexity of the existing models varies widely, depending on the parasite and its life cycle, ranging from basic culture methods to advanced 3D systems. This review aims to highlight the research conducted so far in culturing and maintaining parasites in an in vitro setting, thereby contributing to a better understanding of pathogenicity and generating new insights into their lifecycles in the hopes of leading to effective treatments and prevention strategies. This work is the first comprehensive outline of existing in vitro models for highly transmissible helminth diseases causing severe morbidity and mortality in humans globally.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/7/1708helminthsneglected tropical diseases (NTDs)zoonosisin vitro culture3D modelclimate change |
| spellingShingle | Smita Sutrave Martin Heinrich Richter The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation Platforms Microorganisms helminths neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) zoonosis in vitro culture 3D model climate change |
| title | The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation Platforms |
| title_full | The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation Platforms |
| title_fullStr | The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation Platforms |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation Platforms |
| title_short | The Truman Show for Human Helminthic Parasites: A Review of Recent Advances in In Vitro Cultivation Platforms |
| title_sort | truman show for human helminthic parasites a review of recent advances in in vitro cultivation platforms |
| topic | helminths neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) zoonosis in vitro culture 3D model climate change |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/7/1708 |
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