Wuchereria bancrofti is a
human parasiticroundworm that is the major cause of
lymphatic filariasis. It is one of the three parasitic worms, together with
Brugia malayi and
B. timori, that infect the lymphatic system to cause lymphatic filariasis. These filarial worms are spread by a variety of
mosquito vector species.
W. bancrofti is the most prevalent of the three and affects over 120 million people, primarily in Central Africa and the Nile delta, South and Central America, the tropical regions of Asia including southern China, and the Pacific islands.
[1] If left untreated, the infection can develop into a chronic disease called
elephantiasis.
[2] In rare conditions it also causes
tropical eosinophilia, an asthmatic disease. There is no commercially available
vaccine, however high rates of cure have been achieved with various anti-filarial regimens and lymphatic filariasis is the target of the
WHO Global Program to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis with the aim to eradicate the disease as a public health problem by 2020