ulcerative colitis
dr. dolittle | November 19, 2012The leading cause of morbidity in captive rhesus monkeys is a condition called idiopathic chronic diarrhea (ICD), a condition similar to the inflammatory disease ulcerative colitis in humans. Since parasitic worms have recently been used to treat inflammatory bowel diseases in humans, researchers Broadhurst et al., decided to try this therapy in infected monkeys. Young rhesus macaques were administered 1000 human whipworm eggs (Trichuris trichiura) orally (don't worry, they are microscopic). The results: 4 out of 5 of the treated monkeys had reduced diarrhea and began gaining weight. …