title: Progress in research, control and elimination of helminth infections in Asia.
abstract: Global health has substantially improved over the past 20 years. In low- and middle-income countries, in particular, great strives have been made in the control of communicable diseases, including helminth infections. Nevertheless, the most marginalised communities still suffer from infectious diseases that are intimately connected with poverty and lack of access to essential commodities and services, such as clean water, improved sanitation and sufficient food. A two-pronged approach is thus necessary: (i) intensifying control in remaining high-endemicity areas and pockets of high transmission; and (ii) moving from morbidity control to interruption of disease transmission in low-endemicity areas with the goal of local elimination. The latter will require new tools and strategies, going hand-in-hand with strong partnerships and new strategic alliances. In this special issue of Acta Tropica, 35 articles are featured that, together, provide an up-to-date overview of the latest progress made in research, control and elimination of helminth infections in East and Southeast Asia. The first 12 articles expound tools and approaches for improved detection, surveillance and monitoring of helminth infections. Control and elimination approaches for the most important helminth infections are revisited in the next 20 articles. The three remaining articles are cross-cutting pieces examining the interface of agriculture, environment and helminth infections and providing a rationale for integrated, multi-sectorial control approaches that are necessary for sustaining helminthiasis control and progressively moving towards elimination. An interesting aspect revealed through an in-depth analysis of the provenance of the 35 contributions is that the People's Republic of China emerges as a key player in global health, which is documented through its prominent role in research and control of helminth infection and networking throughout Asia. Policy implications are discussed and will hopefully shape the future agenda for the control and elimination of helminth infections the world over.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, P.O. Box, CH-4002 Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, P.O. Box, CH-4003 Basel, Switzerland. Electronic address: juerg.utzinger@unibas.ch.
authors.forename: Jürg
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Utzinger
authors.affiliation: Tropical Medicine Section, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Bernhard-Nocht-Str. 74, D-20359 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Norbert W
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Brattig
authors.affiliation: College of Public Health, University of the Philippines-Manila, Manila, Philippines.
authors.forename: Lydia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Leonardo
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shanghai 200025, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory on Biology of Parasite and Vector, Ministry of Health, WHO Collaborating Center for Malaria, Schistosomiasis and Filariasis, Shanghai 200025, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Nong
authors.initials: XN
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Ingerod, Brastad, Sweden.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bergquist
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001208:Asia / Q000453:epidemiology; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000639:trends*; D006373:Helminthiasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006376:Helminths / Q000472:pathogenicity; D006801:Humans
keywords: Asia; Control; Elimination; Helminth infection; Regional network; Research