Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40444920›Full record

ArticleAmerican journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council2025

Soil-Transmitted Helminths and the Intricacies of Immunoregulation: Evidence From Amazonian Ecuador for the Importance of Considering Species-Specific Effects Within the Old Friends Hypothesis.

Tara J Cepon-Robins, Theresa E Gildner, Samuel S Urlacher, Melissa A Liebert, Felicia C Madimenos, Richard G Bribiescas, Geeta Eick, Christopher Harrington, Lawrence S Sugiyama, J Josh Snodgrass

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in American journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. The Shuar Health and Life History Project: Overview at 20 Years and Introduction to the Special Issue.American journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council · 2026
    Article
  3. 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

10 authors.

Tara J Cepon-RobinsDepartment of Anthropology, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-4508-8507
Theresa E GildnerDepartment of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-7486-5208
Samuel S UrlacherDepartment of Anthropology, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-6489-4117
Melissa A LiebertDepartment of Anthropology, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-8013-6773
Felicia C MadimenosDepartment of Anthropology, Queens College - City University of New York, Flushing, New York, USA.
Richard G BribiescasDepartment of Anthropology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-8228-307X
Geeta EickDepartment of Anthropology, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-7512-3265
Christopher HarringtonDepartment of Anthropology, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA.
Lawrence S SugiyamaDepartment of Anthropology, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA.
J Josh SnodgrassDepartment of Anthropology, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-7021-777X

Funding

NIH Director's Pioneer Award (RMI)DP1OD000516 · OD · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA BARBARA · PI COSMIDES, LEDA · 2005 to 2009
$3.6M
Department of Anthropology, University of OregonLeakey FoundationNational Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grants BCS-0824602National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grants BCS-0925910National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grants BCS-1341165National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships 1144152National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships 2011109300NIH HHS 5DP1O000516-04NIH HHS DP1 OD000516Ryoichi Sasakawa Young Leaders Fellowship FundUniversity of Oregon Faculty Excellence AwardUniversity of Oregon Faculty Research AwardUniversity of Oregon's Institute of Cognitive and Decision SciencesWenner-Gren Foundation 7970Wenner-Gren Foundation 8476
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesThe old friends hypothesis (OFH) examines connections between the global increase in immunoregulatory diseases (e.g., allergy and autoimmunity) and reduced exposure to immune-priming symbionts like soil-transmitted helminths. Helminth species, however, vary in their effects on hosts and should be considered separately. We examined relationships between species-specific helminth infection and circulating biomarkers of adaptive immune antibodies (total immunoglobulin E [IgE]), systemic inflammation (C-reactive protein [CRP]), and immune regulation (interleukin-6 [IL-6]), among Indigenous Shuar adults. We predicted that STH infection would be (1) associated with higher levels of IgE and (2) lower levels of CRP, with (3) IL-6 driving these associations based on species-specific relationships.

methodsOne hundred and seventeen Shuar adults provided stool and finger-prick blood samples. BCa bootstrap ANCOVA and partial correlation tests examined relationships among infection status (uninfected, Ascaris infected, Trichuris infected, coinfected), control variables (region, sex, age, body mass), and immune biomarkers.

resultsOn average, coinfected participants had the highest IgE compared to all other groups. Ascaris-infected individuals had, on average, the lowest CRP levels compared to any other group; this was only significant compared to uninfected participants (p < 0.05). Notably, IL-6 was positively correlated with IgE in Ascaris-infected individuals (p < 0.05) and with CRP in Trichuris-infected individuals (p < 0.05), highlighting its role in differentiating between immunoregulation and inflammation based on species-specific infections.

conclusionsImmune biomarkers varied by infection status: Ascaris infection may downregulate and Trichuris infection may exacerbate systemic inflammation. These preliminary findings suggest that STH species must be considered separately within the OFH.

Indexed as

AscariasisC-Reactive ProteinHelminthiasisSoilTrichuriasisAdolescentAdultAnimalsBiomarkersEcuadorFemaleHelminthsHumansImmunoglobulin EInterleukin-6MaleBiomarkersC-Reactive ProteinImmunoglobulin EInterleukin-6Soilecoimmunologyinflammationmarket integrationneglected tropical diseasesparasites

Identifiers

PMID40444920
PMCPMC12175971

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.