AI Article Synopsis
- Neoplasms can occur in invertebrates but not in tapeworms; however, a case was found where cells from a patient with HIV showed cancer-like features and were linked to tapeworm infection.
- These abnormal cells were identified as originating from Hymenolepis nana, though they did not resemble typical tapeworm tissue and were detectable through specific staining and genetic assays.
- The study reveals a new link between tapeworm infection and cancer, showing that genetically altered tapeworm cells can invade human tissue, presenting a novel mechanism for disease.
Article Abstract
Neoplasms occur naturally in invertebrates but are not known to develop in tapeworms. We observed nests of monomorphic, undifferentiated cells in samples from lymph-node and lung biopsies in a man infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The morphologic features and invasive behavior of the cells were characteristic of cancer, but their small size suggested a nonhuman origin. A polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR) assay targeting eukaryotes identified Hymenolepis nana DNA. Although the cells were unrecognizable as tapeworm tissue, immunohistochemical staining and probe hybridization labeled the cells in situ. Comparative deep sequencing identified H. nana structural genomic variants that are compatible with mutations described in cancer. Invasion of human tissue by abnormal, proliferating, genetically altered tapeworm cells is a novel disease mechanism that links infection and cancer.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa1505892 | DOI Listing |
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