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In vitro cultivation of early schistosomula of nasal and visceral bird schistosomes (Trichobilharzia spp., Schistosomatidae)

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Abstract

Cercariae of bird schistosomes (Trichobilharzia szidati and Trichobilharzia regenti) were mechanically stimulated to transform to schistosomula and kept in different cultivation media supplemented with duck red blood cells and/or homogenized nervous tissue. The development under in vitro conditions was compared with that in vivo, using the following characters: emptying of penetration glands, surface changes, food uptake, and growth of early schistosomula. The results show that the cultivation medium routinely used for human schistosomes is also suitable for mass production of early schistosomula of bird schistosomes, including the unique nasal species—T. regenti. The changes observed resemble those present in worms developing in vivo; therefore, the in vitro produced early schistosomula might be used for further studies of host–parasite interactions.

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Notes

  1. Note: The European T. ocellata corresponds with T. szidati Neuhaus, 1952, but the North American isolates are not identical with T. szidati from Europe (Rudolfová et al. 2005).

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Acknowledgments

The work has been supported by the Czech Ministry of Education (MSM 0021620828 and MSM LC06009) and the Czech Science Foundation (206/06/0777). The authors declare that all the experiments reported in present study comply with the current laws of Czech Republic and EU.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic

    Marta Chanová, Jana Bulantová, Petr Máslo & Petr Horák

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  1. Marta Chanová
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  2. Jana Bulantová
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  3. Petr Máslo
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  4. Petr Horák
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Correspondence to Marta Chanová.

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Chanová, M., Bulantová, J., Máslo, P. et al. In vitro cultivation of early schistosomula of nasal and visceral bird schistosomes (Trichobilharzia spp., Schistosomatidae). Parasitol Res 104, 1445–1452 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-009-1343-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-009-1343-y

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