Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 2, 2026

Determining Soil-transmitted Helminth Infection Status and Physical Fitness of School-aged Children
Published on: August 22, 2012
Genetic component to susceptibility to Trichuris trichiura: evidence from two Asian populations
Sarah Williams-Blangero1, Stephen T McGarvey, Janardan Subedi
1Department of Genetics, Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research, San Antonio, Texas 78245-0549, USA. sarah@darwin.sfbr.org
Abstract:
Trichuris trichiura is an helminthic infection with potentially severe health consequences. The hypothesis that host genetic factors can account for the distribution of Trichuris was tested using familial data on egg counts available for two populations, the Jirels of Nepal and the population of Jishan Island in Jiangxi Province of the People's Republic of China. Whipworm is highly prevalent in the Jishan Island population (86%), but occurs at a low rate in the Jirel population (14%). A quantitative genetic analysis was performed on each data set, using a variance component approach. Approximately 28% of the variation in Trichuris trichiura loads was attributable to genetic factors in both populations. Common household effects accounted for only 4% of the variation in the Jirels and none of the variation in the Jishan Island population. These concordant results from two separate populations provide strong evidence of the important role of genetics in determining differential susceptibility to whipworm infection.
Related Concept Videos
Amebiasis
Behavioral Genetics and Its Designs
The primary methodologies used in behavior genetics include family studies, twin studies, and adoption studies, each providing unique...
Incomplete Dominance
Trichomoniasis
The Ratio of X Chromosome to Autosomes
Normal male Drosophila has a ratio of one X chromosome to two sets of autosomes. In contrast, normal female Drosophila...
Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms-SNPs

