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.
The Scientist Staff
Feb 15, 2017
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.)
