Dennis Kyle, professor of infectious diseases and cellular biology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, spoke with the BBC about the presence of, and fight against, the brain-eating amoeba Naegleria fowleri in India’s Kerala state.
The organism enters through the nose while an individual is swimming and rapidly destroys brain tissue. Officials are working to balance educating the public about the risk and not disrupting daily life in a state that relies heavily on groundwater and natural water bodies.
“This is a difficult problem. In some places [hot springs], signs are posted to warn of the possibility of the amoebae in the water source. This is not practical in most situations since the amoebae can be present in any source of untreated water [lakes, ponds, pools],” Kyle said.
Uncertainty around the amoeba also complicates treatment. Kyle called current drug cocktails “sub-optimal.”
“We lack sufficient data to determine if all the drugs are actually helpful or needed,” Kyle said.