Breakthrough on snail fever

SCIENTISTS have made a discovery about how the body defends itself against snail fever, a parasitic worm infection common in developing countries.

The development, by scientists at Edinburgh University, could point towards new avenues of research into treatments for the condition.

Snail fever, also known as bilharzia, is a water-borne, potentially fatal disease caused by parasitic worms found in freshwater snails in the tropics.

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Common in developing countries in Asia, Africa and South America, the condition causes chronic illness that can damage internal organs and impair growth and brain development in children.

The disease is second only to malaria in terms of its devastating social and economic impact.