The onchocerciasis hypothesis of nodding syndrome.
- Resource Type
- article
- Authors
- Robert Colebunders; Amber Hadermann; Joseph Nelson Siewe Fodjo
- Source
- PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Vol 17, Iss 8, p e0011523 (2023)
- Subject
- Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine
RC955-962
Public aspects of medicine
RA1-1270
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 1935-2727
1935-2735
Nodding syndrome (NS) is a phenotypic presentation of onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy (OAE). OAE is an important public health problem in areas with high ongoing Onchocerca volvulus transmission. OAE, including NS, is preventable by strengthening onchocerciasis elimination programs. The presence of tau in OAE postmortem brains could be the consequence of neuroinflammation directly or indirectly induced by O. volvulus. Omics research is needed to investigate whether O. volvulus worms contain a neurotropic virus.