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On the longevity of Schistosoma curassoni

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 February 2007

J. Vercruysse
Affiliation:
Department of Veterinary Virology, Parasitology and Immunology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, B-9820 Merelbeke, Belgium:
D. Rollinson
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Biomedical Parasitology Division, Wolfson Wellcome Biomedical Laboratories, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 5BD, UK
M. van Heerden
Affiliation:
Department of Pathology, Bacteriology and Avian Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, B-9820 Merelbeke, Belgium:
V.R. Southgate*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Biomedical Parasitology Division, Wolfson Wellcome Biomedical Laboratories, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 5BD, UK
*
*Author for correspondence Fax: 0207 942 5518 E-mail: V.Southgate@nhm.ac.uk

Abstract

It is demonstrated that Schistosoma curassoni, a parasite of sheep, cattle and goats in parts of West Africa, will live for at least 8 years 5 months in a sheep. The sheep was exposed to 500 cercariae of S. curassoni liberated from infected Bulinus wrighti. The sheep died of natural causes, and at post-mortem 28 pairs of adult S. curassoni were removed from the mesenteric and rectal veins. All female worms were gravid, and eggs were hatched from faeces to produce miracidia. The development of immune responses of the host had apparently little or no effect on the viability of the eggs. Histological studies of the liver, small and large intestines revealed mild pathological symptoms. The longevity of S. curassoni is the first record of longevity of schistosomes to be based on worm counts.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Cambridge University Press 2003

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