Anyone who has had a severe stomach illness recognizes the pattern. Even after the worst symptoms fade, appetite often disappears and can take time to return. This same effect is experienced by millions of people worldwide who live with long-term parasitic worm infections. Despite how common it is, scientists have struggled to pinpoint exactly what causes this loss of appetite.
Researchers at UC San Francisco have now identified the biological pathway that links the gut’s immune response to the brain during a parasitic infection. Their work shows how signals from the immune system can actively reduce the desire to eat.
“The question we wanted to answer was not just how the immune system fights parasites, but how it recruits the nervous system to change behavior,” said co-senior author David Julius, PhD, professor and…