Checkmating Parasites

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1996. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Checkmating Parasites

Economist (11/30/96) Vol. 341, No. 7994, P. 83

Abstract: One theory to explain the evolutionary benefit of sexual reproduction suggests that the frequent exchange of genes helps sexual organisms resist parasitic infections. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have published a study which lends support to this theory and may influence the fight against infectious diseases. Drs. Andrew Read, Mark Viney, and Alan Gemmill focused on a parasite of rats, a parasitic worm known as Strongyloides ratti which can reproduce sexually or asexually, depending on its genes and its environment. The researchers manipulated the rats' immune systems to create four groups of rats with varied levels of immunity. They found that the worms which infected the rats with effective immune systems were more likely to produce sexual offspring than those in rats with compromised immunity. This finding is consistent with studies in AIDS patients who are infected with Candida albicans, the yeast that causes thrush. The spread of HIV and the growing population of people with compromised immunity could cause the evolution of infectious organisms to accelerate. Furthermore, as a result of various treatments for HIV, many drug-resistant strains of organisms are already emerging, including Candida. Dr. Read and colleagues suggest that treatment to reduce the extent of parasitic sexual behavior may be an important factor in public health

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