Swiss Tropical Institute discovers new parasitic worm species

Research team from the Tropical Institute discovers new parasitic worm species Keystone-SDA

A research team from the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) has discovered a new parasitic worm species in Côte d’Ivoire. The Natural History Museum Basel accepted the first two preserved specimens on Thursday.

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As the species known as Trichuris incognita responds much less well to medical treatment, new drugs now need to be developed. An infection with the parasite can lead to health problems such as abdominal pain, diarrhoea and anaemia, as was reported at a media conference.

With the transfer to the museum’s collection, the discovery is now officially recognised in accordance with international rules on scientific naming. The species cannot be visually distinguished from the familiar whipworms. The worm has been under the radar of research for many years, said Jennifer Kaiser, Professor at Swiss TPH.

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Researchers initially assumed that the worms in Côte d’Ivoire were resistant. But then it turned out that it was a previously undiscovered species, as TPH researcher Max Bär said. He took stool samples in a village and proved the presence of the new species as part of his doctoral thesis.

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One of the two preserved worms has now been immortalised in the collection as a so-called type specimen. These are reference animals for the first description of a new species. The preservation of such types is therefore very valuable for science, explained Christian Kropf, Head of Biosciences at the museum.

According to the TPH, whipworm infections affect an estimated 500 million people worldwide. The institute is currently working with the pharmaceutical company Bayer on developing a drug that could also be effective against Trichuris incognita.

Translated from German by DeepL/jdp

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