This Week In Parasitism

Vincent, Dickson, and Daniel consider the delivery of anti-trypanosome nanobodies to the tsetse fly via a bacterial symbiont, and present a new case study. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, and Daniel Griffin Links for this episode: Delivery of a functional nanobody to tsetse flies (Microb Cell Fact) Nanobodies (Wikipedia) V.B. Wigglesworth (Wikipedia) VB Nimble, VB Quick Knott test Mazzotti reaction Image credit Letters read on TWiP 84 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email  

Vincent, Dickson, and Daniel present a new case study, and discuss the effect of chronic malaria infection on wild warbler life span and telomere degradation. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, and Daniel Griffin Links for this episode: Effect of chronic malaria infection on wild warblers (Science) Image credit Letters read on TWiP 83 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email  

Vincent, Dickson, and Daniel solve last week's case study, present a new one, and reveal how secreted proteins from a helminth prevent diabetes in mice. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, and Daniel Griffin Links for this episode: Babesiosis (CDC) Babesiosis blood smear with Maltese cross (NEJM) Helminth proteins prevent diabetes in mice (PLoS One) Letters read on TWiP 82 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Vincent, Dickson, and Daniel provide the solution to last week's case study, present a new one, and discuss how immune suppression by nematodes increases tuberculosis fatality in African buffalo. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, and Daniel Griffin Links for this episode: Consequences of living in a wormy world (Am Nat) Opposite effects of antihelminthic treatment on microbial infection (Science) Send your case study solutions to twip@twiv.tv Daniel's cufflinks (jpg) Daniel's TB bowtie (jpg) Image credit Letters read on TWiP 81 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

 Vincent and Dickson welcome new TWiP host Daniel to discuss the association of a new Mycoplasma with Trichomoniasis, and to introduce a new feature to the show, a case study. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, and Daniel Griffin Links for this episode: Association of Mycoplasma with trichomoniasis (PLoS One) Biggest DNA genomes (Wikipedia) Send your case study solutions to twip@twiv.tv Letters read on TWiP 80 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email  

Vincent and Dickson discuss the spread of P. knowlesi in Malaysia, and how Leishmania parasites protect the sandfly gut from bacterial infection. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Spread of P. knowlesi in Malaysia (NY Times) Climate change in Europe and vector transmitted disease (Infez Med) Colonisation resistance in the sandfly gut (Parasites & Vectors) Car Talk co-host dies Early Career Scientists Symposium Image credit: Anne Marie Letters read on TWiP 79 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email  

Vincent and Dickson discuss how malaria parasites induce odors in their rodent hosts that attract mosquitoes. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Visceral Leishmaniasis, South Sudan (ProMedMail) Malaria-induced changes in host odors (PNAS) Image credit Letters read on TWiP 77 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Vincent and Dickson discuss the exchange of messenger RNAs between a parasitic plant and its hosts. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Exchange of mRNAs between parasite and plant (Science) White leaf rust (Wikipedia) Cuscuta (Wikipedia) Fungal haustoria (PNAS) Image credit Letters read on TWiP 77 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email  

Vincent and Dickson discuss how infection of mice with helminths induces cytokines that reactivate a latent gamma-herpesvirus. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Helminths reactivate herpesvirus (Science) How helminths go viral (Science) Herpesvirus latency protects from bacterial infection (Nature) Image credit Letters read on TWiP 76 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Bobbi Pritt joins Vincent and Dickson to talk about directing a clinical parasitology laboratory and her weekly case reports at Creepy Dreadful Wonderful Parasites. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Guest: Bobbi Pritt Links for this episode: Creepy Dreadful Wonderful Parasites Letters read on TWiP 75 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Vincent and Dickson review a novel malaria vaccine candidate comprising a parasite protein involved in egress from red blood cells. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Egress protein a malaria vaccine candidate (Science) Human proteins (Wikipedia) Plasmodium genomics resource Image: P. falciparum ring forms and gametocytes in blood Letters read on TWiP 74 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Vincent and Dickson discuss how nibbling of human cells by Entamoeba histolytica, a process called amoebic trogocytosis, contributes to cell killing and tissue invasion. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Trogocytosis by E. histolytica (Nature) Trogocytosis Entamoeba histolytica (TWiP 17) Entamoeba histolytica life cycle (jpg) Image: E. histolytica nibbling a green cell (credit) Letters read on TWiP 73 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Vincent and Dickson discuss five ways that helminths manipulate host tissues to survive. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Wormholes in host defense (PLoS Path) Lung coin lesion (Wikipedia) Granuloma (Wikipedia) Jar that Dickson is holding (jpg) Letters read on TWiP 72 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Vincent and Dickson review the finding that urocanic acid in the skin is a chemoattractant for the parasitic nematode Strongyloides stercoralis. Download TWiP #71 (60 MB .mp3, 84 minutes). Links for this episode: Strongyloides stercoralis (TWiP #71) Urocanic acid is a S. stercoralis chemoattractant (PNAS) Chemical trails of parasites (PNAS) Urocanic acid (Wikipedia) Candiru (Wikipedia) Your Inner Fish (PBS) Letters read on TWiP 71 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Vincent and Dickson discuss the finding of Gnathostoma nematodes in Asian swamp eels from US live markets and wild populations. Links for this episode: Guinea worm eradication at risk (Science) Gnathostomiasis (CDC) Asian swamp eel Gnathostoma in live swamp eels (EID) Interview with Rebecca Cole (YouTube) Letters read on TWiP 70 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Vincent and Dickson discuss an increase in the altitude of malaria distribution in warmer years in the highlands of Colombia and Ethiopia. Links for this episode: Altitudinal changes in malaria incidence (Science) El Niño (Wikipedia) NOAA El Niño page Image credit: Science Letters read on TWiP 69 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello Dickson Despommier, and Sagi Shapira Vincent, Dickson, and Sagi discuss evidence that the pathogen Trypanosoma brucei undergoes meiosis and sexual reproduction. Links for this episode: Meiosis and haploid gametes in T. brucei (Curr Biol) Meiosis (Wikipedia) Letters read on TWiP 68 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Vincent and Dickson explain the genetic and molecular basis of drug resistance in Schistosoma mansonii. Links for this episode: Basis of resistance to oxamniquine (Science) Oxamniquine (Wikipedia) Letters read on TWiP 67 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email  

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Vincent and Dickson discuss reversible inhibitors of cruzipain as new drugs for treating Chagas disease. Links for this episode: Reversible cysteine protease inhibitors for Chagas (AAC) New drug candidates for Chagas (ScienceDaily) Pancake ice (YouTube) Letters read on TWiP 66 Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email  

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Vincent and Dickson consider the effects of climate change on parasitic diseases. Links for this episode: Climate change and infectious diseases (Science) The more parasites the better? (Science) Host and parasite control disease risk (PNAS) Parasites dominate food web links (PNAS) The World Without Us by Alan Weisman Image credit: PLoS One Letters read on TWiP 65 Dickson's Pick Neglected by Shelly Xie (YouTube) Contact Send your questions and comments (email or mp3 file) to twip@twiv.tv Subscribe Subscribe to TWiP (free) in iTunes, by the RSS feed or by email