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Zoonotic and vector-borne parasites and epilepsy in low-income and middle-income countries

Singh, G; Angwafor, SA; Njamnshi, AK; Fraimow, H; Sander, JW; (2020) Zoonotic and vector-borne parasites and epilepsy in low-income and middle-income countries. Nature Reviews Neurology , 16 pp. 333-345. 10.1038/s41582-020-0361-3. Green open access

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Abstract

Zoonotic and vector-borne parasites are important preventable risk factors for epilepsy. Three parasitic infections — cerebral malaria, Taenia solium cysticercosis and onchocerciasis — have an established association with epilepsy. Parasitoses are widely prevalent in low-income and middle-income countries, which are home to 80% of the people with epilepsy in the world. Once a parasitic infection has taken hold in the brain, therapeutic measures do not seem to influence the development of epilepsy in the long term. Consequently, strategies to control, eliminate and eradicate parasites represent the most feasible way to reduce the epilepsy burden at present. The elucidation of immune mechanisms underpinning the parasitic infections, some of which are parasite-specific, opens up new therapeutic possibilities. In this Review, we explore the pathophysiological basis of the link between parasitic infections and epilepsy, and we consider preventive and therapeutic approaches to reduce the burden of epilepsy attributable to parasitic disorders. We conclude that a concerted approach involving medical, veterinary, parasitological and ecological experts, backed by robust political support and sustainable funding, is the key to reducing this burden.

Type: Article
Title: Zoonotic and vector-borne parasites and epilepsy in low-income and middle-income countries
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1038/s41582-020-0361-3
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-020-0361-3
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology > Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10102687
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