Worm turns up trumps for allergy sufferers

A LOWLY parasitic worm could help slow the rising number of people suffering from allergic and auto-immune conditions. It could also help reduce the impact of asthma, an increasingly common condition that affects up to 470,000 people here.

How this could happen will be explained in a talk to be given on May 17th by Prof Padraic Fallon, director of research in the school of medicine at TCD. Fallon is this year’s recipient of the 2012 Irish Society for Immunology Public Lecture Award. The lecture, which forms part of the award, is the next in a series presented by the RDS and The Irish Times in association with the Irish Society for Immunology.

The past few decades had seen an epidemic of allergies across the world, Fallon said in advance of the talk. Irish children have experienced high levels of these inflammatory diseases such as eczema and asthma compared to other countries.

Fallon will explain how aspects of modern life are contributing to this epidemic.

The parasitic worm schistosoma mansoni (above) may have an important role to play in this. Those infected do not tend to suffer from allergies, suggesting that the presence of the worm conveys some benefit. Prof Fallon and his team are searching for the reasons for this.

The title of Fallon’s lecture is: Allergy epidemic – Will a worm a day keep the doctor away? It takes place at the RDS on Thursday, May 17th, at 7pm. Places for the event are free of charge but must be booked in advance.

Contact foundation@rds.ie, call 01-2407263 or visit rds.ie/science.