We have investigated the capacity of irradiated larvae of each of six different isolates of Schistosoma mansoni to protect mice against challenge infections from the homologous or a different isolate. The isolates differed in respect of their geographic origins, and in the lengths of time they had been maintained in the laboratory. All isolates induced significant protection against unattenuated challenge infections, and neither the degree of geographic disimilarity between vaccinating and challenge parasites, nor the numbers of laboratory cycles, appeared to influence the degree of protection induced by irradiation-attenuated larvae.

The callitrichid primates, Callithrix jacchus jacchus (the marmoset) and Saguinus labiatus (the tamarin) were inoculated with infective larvae of Brugia malayi and B. pahangi. Microfilaraemia at low levels developed in 3 out of 4 C. j. jacchus infected with B. malayi and living or dead adult worms found in all 4. Only one of 4 C. j. jacchus became microfilaraemic (mf + ve) when given B. pahangi and adults were found in two. Of 4 S. labiatus given B. pahangi one became very lightly mf + ve and adults were found in 3. It is concluded that these animals are not suitable hosts for chemotherapeutic experiments.

Two species of nematodes were recovered from the Meller's chamaeleon from Nyasaland, which died at the London Zoo. They comprised ten females and eight males of Foleyella candezi from the axilla and peritoneal cavity, and two adult females of Abbreviata sp. from the gut. Specific determination was not possible for the latter species, owing to the paucity of the material.

The females are thread-like and very slightly flattened dorso-ventrally. They have an average length of 94.8 mm. and range from 73 to 124 mm. The width is more or less uniform, average 0.5 mm. but becomes narrow at 1 mm. from the tip of the tail. The anterior end is bluntly rounded and in some specimens has a slightly bulbous appearance when observed from the lateral aspect. This is due to a slight narrowing at the junction of the oesophagus and intestine.

The tail is more attenuated than the anterior end and it is slightly curved ventrad and marked by a shallow groove running ventrally from the anus to the tip where it is flanked by two minute papillae-like structures.

The shallow stoma is somewhat oval in shape and surrounded by ten minute papillae, six of which form an inner circle and four an outer circle. The mid-dorsal and mid-ventral papillae of the inner circle are more conspicuous than the others.

Recently (1924) Chandler has described from the duodenum of a Bennett's Wallaby (Macropus bennetti), a new genus of Trichostrongylidæ. Shortly after the publication of this paper, the writer was privileged to study what appears to be a second new species from the same host. The parasites are very small forms and occur mainly in the stomach, but are also found occasionally in the first part of the small intestine. A few specimens of Chandler's species were also present.

1. The effect of relative humidity on the survival and development of Neoascaris vitulorum eggs to the infective stage is described.

2. Tables showing the percentages of eggs at different stages of development and dead eggs at weekly interval for two different sizes of faecal masses are constructed and the results discussed.

3. Detailed weather graphs showing daily rainfall, average daily relative humidity and evapotranspiration for Ibadan and Obudu during the rainy season of 1964 are constructed and the effect of the weather on survival of Neoascans vitulorum eggs in pasture at these places is discussed.

4. The minimum relative humidity for the survival and development of Neoascaris vitulorum eggs to the infective stage is found to be 80%. The period of survival of eggs in a dry atmosphere depends on the size of the faecal mass containing the eggs. The critical relative humidity for Neoascaris vitulorum eggs is compared with values for other ascarids of domestic animals.

An investigation into the potential for transmission of gastrointestinal helminths from wild hogs to livestock and humans was prompted by concerns of recreational wild-hog hunting in the Caribbean region and the recent practice, by livestock farmers in Jamaica, of co-rearing wild and domesticated swine. Thirty-one wild hogs from the Hellshire Hills, a dry limestone forest in southern Jamaica, were necropsied during the period June 2004 to August 2006. Thirteen of the captured animals were male and 18 female. Four species of adult helminths were recovered from the gastrointestinal tracts of the wild hogs: Hyostrongylus rubidus (77%), Globocephalus urosubulatus (48%), Oesophagostomum dentatum (42%) and Macroacanthorhynchus hirudinaceus (77%). Two (6.2%), ten (32.2%) and 18 (58.0%) hogs harboured one, two and three species of helminths, respectively. Mean infection intensities varied from 8.1 for M. hirudinaceus, to 115.5 for O. dentatum. There was no association between any of the recovered helminths and sex of the host; however, a multivariate analysis indicated a positive association between the prevalence of G. urosubulatus and host age (odds ratio (OR) = 6.517). Domesticated hogs co-reared with wild hogs are potentially at risk of infection with all four helminths, while wild-hog hunters and pig farmers may be exposed to M. hirudinaceus.

A series of experiments on corn meal agar was carried out to evaluate the efficacy of the nematode-trapping fungus Duddingtonia flagrans in different abiotic and biotic conditions which occur in cow pats. Above a concentration of 50 parasitic larvae (L3) cm–2 the fungus produced a maximum of between 500 and 600 nets cm–2 at 20°C in 2 days on the surface of corn meal agar. There were no differences in the trap-producing capacity of three strains of D. flagrans (CIII4, CI3 and Trol A). On agar at 30° and 20°C, the fungus responded to Cooperia oncophora L3 very quickly producing a maximum of trapping nets 1 day after induction. At 10°C, traps were produced slowly starting on day 4 after induction and continued over the following week. Duddingtonia flagrans (CI3) grew at a normal rate at least down to an oxygen concentration of 6 vol.% O2, but it did not grow anaerobically. On agar, D. flagrans (CI3) did not produce trapping nets in an anaerobic atmosphere. Moreover, C. oncophora L3 stopped migration under anaerobic conditions. When the fungal cultures were transferred to a normal aerobic atmosphere, after 1 and 2 weeks under anaerobic conditions, the C. oncophora L3 resumed migrating on the agar and, in response, D. flagrans produced traps in the same amount as when it had not been under anaerobic stress. Under microaerophilic conditions (6 vol.% O2) D. flagrans was able to grow, but the C. oncophora L3 were not able to induce trapping nets in D. flagrans (Trol A) because of larval immobility. But, as under anaerobic conditions, the fungus could return to a nematode-trapping state when transferred to a normal aerobic atmosphere within 1 or 2 weeks if migrating nematodes were present. Under natural conditions in the cow pat it is expected that the fungus will be ready to attack parasitic larvae, when the oxygen tension increases as a result of, for example the activity of the coprophilic fauna. Artificial light giving 3000–3400 Lux on the surface of the agar significantly depressed the growth rate and the production of trapping nets in D. flagrans (CI3). On agar, D. flagrans (CI3) could grow and produce trapping nets at pH levels of 6.3 to 9.3. Net-production has its optimum between pH 7 and 8. On dry faeces mycelial growth was 7–10 mm during a 15 day period while on moist faeces the fungus expanded 15–20 mm during the same period. Based on the parameters investigated, D. flagrans is expected to be especially active in the well aerated surface layer of a cow pat, an area which normally contains a high concentration of infective nematode parasite larvae, but also an area where the temperature can be high and the water content low.

Amongst thousands of specimens of Paramphistomum microbothrium Fischoeder, Cotylophoron cotylophorum (Fischoeder), Carmyerius exoporus Maplestone, and Carmyerius mancupatus (Fischoeder) 645 specimens of Ceylonocotyle scoliocoelium (Fisqhoeder) were found in the rumen of one Zebu steer and in lesser numbers in the rumens of two other Zebu cattle slaughtered at the abattoir at Nakuru, Kenya.

During a visit to Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh (India) in April, 1956, the writer examined thirty specimens of the frog Rana cyanophlyctis and found that every one of them was heavily infected with an interesting nematode in the rectum. Large numbers of males and females of this parasite were collected and fixed in 5% formalin containing 10% glycerine. Specimens thus fixed and preserved could easily be dissected for preparing mounts of reproductive organs for detailed study. Before being dissected the preserved worms were at first washed in tapwater and then placed in 70% glycerine alcohol which was allowed to evaporate until the worms were in almost pure glycerine.

This small ankylostome was collected from the intestine of a Gambian mongoose which had arrived in England some eight months previously, and had died in the gardens of the Zoological Society of London.

Morphometric analysis of Schistosoma mansoni male worms obtained from AKR/J and Swiss mice was carried out. Rodents infected by the intraperitoneal route with 80 cercariae of the schistosome (LE strain) were killed by cervical dislocation at 45 and 60 days post-infection and both peritoneal lavage and perfusion of the portal system were performed for the recovery of adult worms. Characteristics including total body length, the distance between oral and ventral suckers, extension of testicular mass and the number of testes were considered in the morphological analysis. Changes that occurred in S. mansoni recovered from the peritoneal cavity or from the portal system of AKR/J and Swiss mice included total body length and reproductive characteristics. Significant morphometric alterations were also observed when worms recovered from the portal system of both strains of mice were compared with the schistosomes obtained from hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus), the vertebrate host in which the LE strain had been adapted and maintained by successive passages for more than four decades. The present results reinforce the idea that S. mansoni has high plastic potential and adaptive capacity.

According to the Brazilian Agricultural Ministry, the prevalence of cystic echinococcosis in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil has decreased between 1990 and 1998, possibly due to the common use of albendazole to control parasites in sheep. Therefore, albendazole (ABZ) action was tested on hydatid cysts of sheep experimentally infected with eggs of Echinococcus granulosus in Uruguaiana County (RS) with the aim of evaluating the observed changes in the parasite's prevalence. The sheep were divided into three groups of 15 animals each and treated as follows. Group 01 was a control (without treatment), groups 02 and 03 received 7.5 mg/kg and 15 mg/kg, respectively, of ABZ orally for 12 months, at intervals between 36 and 45 days. At the end of the studied period the animals were necropsied and the viability of the hydatid cysts was evaluated. Lung and hepatic cysts of sheep treated with ABZ were reduced in size. Degeneration and evident calcification were seen in 87.3% (group 02) and 75.7% (group 03), which were significantly different (P < 0.01) from the 17.3% demonstrated in the control group. It could be concluded that ABZ used early and over long periods, even in small doses, is capable of promoting lesions that devitalize the cysts. This leads to a decrease in fertility of E. granulosus in sheep and could be the reason why the prevalence of cystic echinococcosis has decreased in recent years.

The aim of this study was to determine if the plerocercoid larvae of Gymnorhynchus gigas, a common cestode of the ray’s bream (Brama raii), possess antigenic compounds potentially capable of provoking anaphylactic episodes. A murine experimental model, using BALB/c mice, was developed to study the humoral immune response induced by G. gigas extracts. A highly specific humoral immune response was detected and cross-reactions were not observed between parasite and host antigens. The presence of IgM and IgG3 levels suggest the presence of thymus-independent antigens in the parasitic extract. The IgG antibody class showed the highest levels, with the IgG1 the predominant subclass. These IgG1 levels are in accordance with the supposed presence of a type I allergic reaction after the ingestion of G. gigas plerocercoids parasitizing fish, as well as inducing anaphylaxia in fish. These results indicate that somatic products released from ingested larvae of G. gigas could induce the development of a Th2 response capable of causing allergic disorders.

A sandwich antibody ELISA was employed for the detection of circulating filarial antigen in patients with bancroftian filariasis. Wuchereria bancrofti recombinant antigen-derived polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies were successfully used as the revealing antibodies and their efficiency was compared. All the microfilariae (mf) positive (by finger prick and examination of 20 μl of blood under the microscope) individuals tested showed the presence of circulating antigen(s). Among the antigen positive endemic normals (mf negative by the finger prick method), 43% showed microfilariae by a sensitive parasitological method viz. membrane filtration of the night blood samples. A significant correlation was observed between the parasite antigen levels and the blood microfilaria counts among the mf carriers. This information on the parasite antigen levels could be an ideal monitor to indicate the degree of active infection and in the follow up of chemotherapy.

Infective larvae of Angiostrongylus cantonensis may take up and incorporate exogenous arachidonic acid into their lipid pool. By scintillation counting, uptake and incorporation were determined to be time dependent. Arachidonic acid was mainly incorporated into phospholipid (56.8%) and neutral lipid (22.4%) pools. In the neutral lipids, 64.0% was diglyceride and 36.0% triglyceride. Phosphatidylcholine was the predominant fatty acid in the phospholipid pool. In addition to the release of leukotriene B4, the parasite was found to generate radiolabelled CO2 after incubation with [U-14C]arachidonate. Moreover, enzymatic analysis of crude extracts revealed the presence of acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (short and long chain), thiolase, enoyl-CoA hydratase and 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase. These findings suggest that infective larvae of A. cantonensis not only take up and incorporate exogenous arachidonic acid into their lipid pool, but may also utilize the fatty acid through a functional β-oxidation pathway.

Larvae of the cyclophyllidean tapeworms Paradilepis scolecina (Rudolphi, 1819), Neogryporhynchus cheilancristrotus (Wedl, 1855) and Valipora campylancristrota (Wedl, 1855), are described from British freshwater fish. The morphometrics of the rostellar hooks, infection characteristics and host ranges of these parasites from fisheries in England and Wales are presented. Difficulties in the detection, handling and identification of these tapeworms are highlighted, and may in part explain the paucity of records from Britain. Tissue digestion was shown to be a useful technique for the examination of these parasites, providing clear and consistent preparations of the rostellar hooks for measurement. The pathological changes caused by P. scolecina to the liver of wild tench, Tinca tinca, are detailed for the first time. Tapeworms located in the hepatic parenchyma and pancreatic tissues caused little pathological damage and invoked only mild inflammatory responses. The small size of these tapeworms and their encapsulation within host tissues appear to limit the severity of pathology, compared with parasites that insert their rostellum during attachment.

The serotoninergic and peptidergic components of the nervous system of the cercaria of Sanguinicola inermis (Digenea: Sanguinicolidae) were examined using whole-mount immunocytochemistry and a plan of the nervous system has been described. Antibodies to serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) and the neuropeptides, FMRFamide, GFNSALMFamide (S1) and SGPYSFNSGLTFamide (S2) were used in the study. Immunoreactivity (IR) was demonstrated to all but the S2 antisera and showed a similar fundamental distribution. IR was found in paired cerebral ganglia located anteriorly within the body and connected by a cerebral commissure. From the ganglia paired ventral and dorsal longitudinal nerve cords extend anteriorly into the cephalic organ and into the body. There is no apparent connection with the tail. Several transverse commissures connect the longitudinal nerve cords throughout the body and several associated cell bodies have been located. A double-stranded dorsal and ventral longitudinal nerve cord extends the length of the tail and six cell bodies are associated with these cords, uniquely demonstrating either FMRFamide and S1, or 5-HT-like IR. Only 5-HT-like IR was found to extend into the posterior tail furcae and there appears to be a lack of any peripheral tegumental innervation. Double-labelling experiments suggest that the serotoninergic and peptidergic components of the cercarial nervous system are distinct.

The pathology associated with the early migratory phase of infection by the sparganum larvae of Spirometra theileri (Baer, 1925) Opuni and Muller, 1974 (Pseudophyllidea: Diphyllobothriidae), has been investigated in TO strain mice and in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatto). All infected mice developed haemorrhagic skin lesions and oedema of the joints and often ascites and peritonitis 3–6 weeks after infection. There was a 25% mortality in mice given plerocercoids orally, 37.5% in those injected with procercoids intraperitoneally. From eight weeks after infection larvae in both mice and monkeys were at various stages of encapsulation. One monkey which died three weeks after oral infection with 100 procercoids had developed ascites, haemorrhagic lesions and an acute peritonitis; infarcts were observed in the liver, lungs and spleen.

The surface tegument of G. tigrinum generally resembles that described for other digeneans. It contains surface tubercles and is covered with a glycocalyx. In the anterior region the tegument bears spines while tubular-like canals and occasional deep invaginations are present on the anteroventral surface. Two types of secretory body are present in the tegumental syncytium and produced in separate tegumental cells. Mitochondria are present in the surface syncytium, suggesting active transport occurs across the tegument in non-hibernating frogs.

The ability of total homogenate (TH) of Fasciola hepatica conjugated with aluminium hydroxide (alum) or Freund's complete adjuvant (FCA) to protect cattle against experimental fasciolosis was evaluated. Compared with the infected group, the immunized animals with alum-TH and FCA-TH presented a significant reduction in fluke burden (85.9% and 96.8%, respectively), a higher percentage of short-sized worms, a marked reduction in the released eggs in faeces (89% and 57%, respectively), as well as an increased production of specific antibodies before infection. The alum-TH immunized group also showed a significant increase in the antigen-specific proliferation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) as early as 4 weeks before infection. Although both immunized groups (alum-TH and FCA-TH) were able to develop an efficient protective immune response to metacercarial challenge, an earlier PBMC response, lower hepatic damage and less effect on weight gain were found in alum-immunized animals. Therefore, alum is a good candidate for future immunization against bovine fasciolosis.