Filarial Pathology

Pathology and Treatment of Filarial Nematode Infection

The patholological symptoms of filarial infection can be broken into the following categories. Under each category is a list of the filarial nematode species that cause the associated conditions and selecting these will take you to a discription of the pathologies associated with the particular species.
To browse a taxonomically arranged filarial species list, go here.

Call for Authors and Comments

Please pass comment on these pages. They are intended as a resource for helping non-filariologists, monospecific filariologists and those of us who just plain forget ("What is the structure of Suramin?", "What IS the vector for Dracunculus?"). They will only work if all the errors are cleared up, and lots of new information is added... Post your comments to me.

Lymphatic Filariasis

Lymphatic filariasis is a spectral disease. Massive elephantiasis as depicted here (in this case caused by B.malayi ) is one of the common conditions associated with long-term lymphatic filarial infection. These gross and incapacitating deformities often require radical surgery to remove the surplus tissues and to provide a shunt around damaged lymphatics (picture taken from Peters and Gilles (1991) A Color Atlas of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology). Acute fevers and lymphangitis also can result from lymphatic filarial infection.

Lymphatic Filariasis can be caused by the following species:

  • Wucheria bancrofti
  • Brugia malayi
  • Brugia timori

    Subcutaneous Filariasis

    Adult nematodes can sometimes be seen migrating through the body in subcutaneous filarial infections. This picture shows adult Loa loa moving beneath the conjunctiva in the eye and skin.

    Subcutaneous Filariasis can be caused by the following species:

  • Onchocerca volvulus
  • Loa loa
  • Mansonella streptocerca
  • Dracunculus medinensis

    Serous Cavity Filariasis

    This nonpathological condition is caused by the following species:
  • Mansonella perstans
  • Mansonella ozzardi

    Immunobiology of Filarial Infection

    Filarial nematodes can survive for many years in an otherwise immunologically intact human host. The understanding immunobiology of this survival, and the means by which the host can overcome the parasites' defences, are crucial first steps in the hunt for vaccines and better drugs. The picture shows the killing of a microfilarae (larval filarial parasite found in the bloodstream) by an antibody-dependent cell mediated cytotoxicity reaction (ADCC) (Picture taken from Wyler, David J. (1990) Modern Parasite Biology). For more information on the immune response to filarial infection and the tactics the parasites use to evade it please select the highlighted picture.

    Treatment of Filarial Infections

    For more information on how infection by filarial parasites and their associated conditions are treated please select the highlighted title.

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    last modified 01/01/96