The morphology of the scolices and metascolices of 29 proteocephalid species, parasites of freshwater fishes from Brazil was compared by using scanning electron microscope, light and laser microscopy. The following species were evaluated: Proteocephalus vazzolerae, P. piramutab, Robertiella paranaensis, Travassiella avitellina, Monticellia loyolai, M. spinulifera, M. belavistensis, Houssayela s...

Larvae (metacestodes) of tapeworms of the cyclophyllidean family Gryporhynchidae (previously included in the Dilepididae) occur in different internal organs of fresh- and brackish water fish (110 fish species of 27 families in 12 orders reported), which serve as the second intermediate hosts. The species composition, spectrum of fish hosts, sites of infection, and geographical distribution of g...

The usefulness of the ultrastructural characters of spermiogenesis and of the spermatozoon in the interpretation of relationships in the Platyhelminthes has been widely demonstrated. The present paper provides a review and an update on the ultrastructural knowledge on spermiogenesis and on the spermatozoon in cyclophyllidean cestodes. For each family of cyclophyllideans the pattern of spermioge...

Most of the conventional anthelmintics for cestodiasis are known to destroy the worm body. The risk of cysticercosis and recurrence of cestodiasis will be avoided only if tapeworms are ejected with intact bodies and scoleces . Two cases with Diphyllobothrium latum and two with Taenia saginata were treated by administration of 200-300 ml of Gastrografin through a duodenal tube. The worm bodies w...

Taenia saginata, T. solium, and T. asiatica are causative agents of taeniasis in humans. The difficulty of morphological identification of human taeniids can lead to misdiagnosis or confusion. To overcome this problem, several molecular methods have been developed, but use of these tends to be time-consuming. Here, a rapid and high-throughput pyrosequencing approach was developed for the identi...

Two new dilepidid cestodes parasitic in common landbirds of Ivory Coast are described. Spiniglans thomassankara sp. nov. was found Ploceus nigerrimus castaneofuscus (Ploceidae) and other species along the lagoon system South East country. It shows characters similar to those members both Dictymetra but lacks a clearly visible ductus masculinus. is characterized by 24-26 comparatively long hooks...

Phenotypic variation is common among conspecifics from the same population, but its causes are not always clear. Parasites may often play a role, as their ability to induce phenotypic changes in their hosts is well established, though not widely acknowledged among marine ecologists. Here, we tested for a possible role of parasites as determinants of marked colour polymorphism, as well as variat...

Helminth parasites were collected from 13 grysbok, Raphicerus melanotis, 12 common duikers, Sylvicapra grimmia, 24 Angora goats and 24 Boer goats killed on a farm in Valley Bushveld in the eastern Cape Province. Nematodes belonging to 9 species and a further 2 genera and cestodes belonging to 1 species and a further genus were recovered from the grysbok. Of these, worms of the genus Skrjabinema...

We surveyed protozoan and metazoan parasites as well as white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) and infectious hypodermal hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHHNV) in white shrimp Litopenaeus setiferus and the palaemonid prawn Macrobrachium acanthurus native to the lower Jamapa River region of Veracruz, Mexico. The presence of parasites and the infection parameters were evaluated in 113 palaemonid prawns c...