Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37438457›Full record

ArticleScientific reports2023

The effect of single dose albendazole (400 mg) treatment on the human gut microbiome of hookworm-infected Ghanaian individuals.

Francis Appiah-Twum, Jewelna Akorli, Lydia Okyere, Kate Sagoe, Dickson Osabutey, Michael Cappello, Michael D Wilson

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 17% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 10 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Archives of Razi Institute · 2025
    Article
  8. Distinct gut microbiome features characterizeFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2025
    Article
  9. Article
  10. Regulation Effect ofMicroorganisms · 2024
    Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 2 institutions in 3 countries.

Francis Appiah-TwumDepartment of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, PO Box LG 581, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
Jewelna AkorliDepartment of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, PO Box LG 581, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
Lydia OkyereDepartment of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, PO Box LG 581, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
Kate SagoeDepartment of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, PO Box LG 581, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
Dickson OsabuteyDepartment of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, PO Box LG 581, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
Michael CappelloDepartment of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, Yale School of Public Health, Yale University, 60 College St, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA.
Michael D WilsonDepartment of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, PO Box LG 581, Legon, Accra, Ghana. MWilson@noguchi.ug.edu.gh.
University of Ghana · GHYale University · US

Funding

Yale Clinical and Translational Science Award (U Component)UL1TR001863 · NCATS · YALE UNIVERSITY · PI John H. Krystal, LUCILA OHNO-MACHADO · 2016 to 2026
$102.9M
Emerging benzimidazole resistance in human hookwormsR01AI132452 · NIAID · YALE UNIVERSITY · PI CAPPELLO, MICHAEL · 2017 to 2021
$2.1M
Noguchi Institute Initiative for NTDs Elimination (NIINE)U19AI129916 · NIAID · NOGUCHI MEMORIAL INSTITUTE / MEDICAL RES · PI WILSON, MICHAEL D · 2017 to 2021
$1.9M
NCATS NIH HHS UL1 TR001863NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI132452NIAID NIH HHS U19 AI129916NIH HHS U19AI129916
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Microbes play a key role in human gut homeostasis, metabolic, immunologic and physiopathology of the body. A longitudinal study conducted during 2018-2021 in the Kintampo North Municipality in Ghana demonstrated low hookworm infection cure rates following treatment with a single dose of 400 mg albendazole in some communities. To investigate associations between hookworm infection and the gut microbiome, we examined stool samples from consented participants who were either cured or remained infected after treatment. At each time point, stool was collected prior to and 10-14 days after albendazole treatment. We used 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing of DNA extracted from stool samples to investigate the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota and to identify potential microbial biomarkers associated with treatment outcomes. Hookworm infection was associated with increased species richness (p = 0.0093). Among treated individuals, there was also a significant variation in microbiota composition at 10-14 days following single-dose albendazole treatment. Individuals cured of hookworm infection after treatment showed a significant reduction in microbiota composition when compared to their pre-treatment state (ANOSIM; p = 0.02), whilst individuals who failed to clear the infection showed no change in microbiota composition (ANOSIM; p = 0.35). Uninfected individuals and those who were successfully treated were similar in their microbial composition and structure. We also found that the abundance of Clostridia spp. was increased in infected individuals pre- or post-treatment. Predictive functional profiling revealed the enrichment of two pyruvate ferredoxin oxidoreductase subunit pathways in individuals who remained infected after treatment (p < 0.05), alluding to an upturn of strictly anaerobic commensal bacteria such as Clostridia spp. This study suggests a relationship between human gut microbiome dysbiosis and albendazole therapy outcomes of hookworm infection. Future studies will further characterize specific biomarkers identified within this study to establish their potential for assessment of pharmacological responses to anthelminthic therapies, as well as explore the possibility of using probiotic supplementation as an adjunct treatment to increase albendazole effectiveness against hookworm.

Indexed as

Gastrointestinal MicrobiomeHookworm InfectionsMicrobiotaAlbendazoleAncylostomatoideaAnimalsGhanaHumansLongitudinal StudiesRNA, Ribosomal, 16SAlbendazoleRNA, Ribosomal, 16S

Identifiers

PMID37438457
PMCPMC10338455
OpenAlexW4383988787

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.