A New Role for Old Friends: Effects of Helminth Infections on Vaccine Efficacy

Abstract

Vaccines are one of the most successful medical inventions to enable the eradication or control of common and fatal diseases. Environmental exposure of hosts, including helminth infections, plays an important role in immune responses to vaccines. Given that helminth infections are among the most common infectious diseases in the world, evaluating vaccine efficiency in helminth-infected populations may provide critical information for selecting optimal vaccination programs. Here, we reviewed the effects of helminth infections on vaccination and its underlying immunological mechanisms, based on findings from human studies and animal models. Moreover, the potential influence of helminth infections on SARS-CoV-2 vaccine was also discussed. Based on these findings, there is an urgent need for anthelmintic treatments to eliminate helminth suppressive impacts on vaccination effectiveness during implementing mass vaccination in parasite endemic areas.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of the association of infection with <i>Toxocara canis</i> with atopy and asthma

“…The recently updated Old Friends Hypothesis, an evolution of the hygiene hypothesis aligning with Darwinian medical principles and supported by contemporary epidemiological and experimental findings (Strachan, 1989;Maizels et al, 2014;Zhu et al, 2022;Rook, 2023), posits that the advent of modern urbanization characterized by concrete and asphalt since the early 19th century has led to a gradual rise in immunoregulatory disorders (Blackley, 1991;Maizels et al, 2014). This increase is believed to stem from the urban setting's diminished exposure to microorganisms that have historically coevolved with mammals (Maizels et al, 2014; Pontes-de-Carvalho & Mengel, 2014; Rook, 2023).…”

More than Three Decades of Bm86: What We Know and Where to Go

“…Along the same lines, co-infestation with different tick species and their associated tick-borne pathogens [ 196 ] may greatly affect the host’s immune response to tick infestation, transmission of tick-borne pathogens, and vaccination. For instance, the interactions between the tick vector and pathogen infections within a host can have synergistic or antagonistic effects, resulting in diverse effects on host susceptibility, infection duration, transmission profile, and clinical manifestations [ 197 , 198 , 199 ]. It is thus plausible to hypothesise that co-infestation of R. microplus and the infectious pathogens it transmits during feeding (i.e., Babesia and Anaplasma spp.)…”

Maternal infection causes dysfunctional BCR signaling in male offspring due to aberrant Xist expression

“…Despite high vaccination coverage, infectious diseases remain prevalent around the globe, with vaccine efficacy differing by regions ( 1, 2 ). Specifically, in some regions of Africa where parasitic infections are endemic, efficacy to common childhood vaccines is lower than in regions where parasitic infections are not as prevalent ( 3, 4 ), raising the possibility that this is caused by bystander immunosuppression driven by parasite infection ( 5, 6 ).…”