On 21 Apr 1995, Steve Meshnick wrote:
> That depends on how you define "parasite" (see other thread....). There
> has been a lot of interest, here in the U.S. in Toxoplasma gondii,
> Cryptosporidium, and Pneumocystis carinii in AIDS patients (although the
> latter is a fungus and not classically a parasite. I think of parasites
> as "those bugs discussed in parasitology textbooks", i.e. protozoa and
> helminths). These are three of the most common opportunistic infections
> in AIDS patients.
> The only other parasite I know of that is associated with AIDS is
> leishmaniasis. People have looked for an association between AIDS and
> malaria, and the only association has been that malaria during pregnancy
> appears to promote verical transmission of HIV. I think that people have
> looked for an association between AIDS and Strongyloides and not found
> any.
> One interesting association has been postulated. Helminth infections
> stimulate Th2-type immunity, and HIV may have a preference for Th2
> T-cells.
> Steve Meshnick
> University of Michigan
>
Additional Note: Lately there has been increased interest in
microsporidia in humans, particularly AIDS patients. See papers by Canning
et al., and Cali et al., for more information.
>
