Parasitizing the cytokine system

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF), a cytokine, can produce egg granulomas and the schistosomes, the parasitic worms that cause schistosomiasis, employ host TNF alpha to stimulate reproduction. Researcher P. Amiri and colleagues found that the schistosome pathogens are able to use TNF when T and B lymphocytes, which form part of the body's immune system, are not present. These findings may lead the way to more research on the co-evolution of parasites and host cytokine responses.