Image of the Day: Seizure-Inducing Worms
Onchocerca volvulus, a parasitic worm, may cause a fatal form of epilepsy in children by inducing an autoimmune reaction.
Feb 15, 2017
The Scientist Staff
A single O. volvulus worm larva breaking free from an infected patient’s skin.THOMAS B. NUTMAN, LABORATORY OF PARASITIC DISEASES, NIAID, NIH
(See T.P. Johnson et al, “Nodding syndrome may be an autoimmune reaction to the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus,” Science, doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.aaf6953, 2017.)
