• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.55-58
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• 2002

The effects of exogenous glucose in artificial spring water (ASW) were studied on the survival and infectivity of Schistosoma mansoni cercariae. The mean percent survival of cercariae maintained in 1% glucose in ASW for 36 and 48hr was significantly greater than that of cercariae maintained identically in ASW. Cercariae maintained in ASW with or without glucose for 24hr, fixed in neutral buffered formalin, and stained in Oil Red O. showed an accumulation of neutral lipid in the tail. Cercariae maintained as described above and stained in periodic acid-Schiff exhibited depleted glycogen, mainly from the tail. Cercariae maintained in ASW with glucose for 24hr did not resynthesize glycogen. Cercariae maintained in ASW with glucose for 24hr were as capable of infecting male FVBN202 mice as were freshly emerged cercariae, and increased the percent of worm recovery. Exogeneous glucose added to ASW prolonged the survival of S. mansoni cercariae and increased infectivity in terms of worm recovery.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.11-18
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• 1983

As a part of observation on the suitability as a second intermediate host of Clonorchis sinensis, various infection experiments were tried to Cyprinus carpio nodus. The results obtained were summarized as follows: 1. The cercariae which attempted to contact with Cyprinus carpio nodus in the water were observed under the stereomicroscope. After contact, cercariae began to separate its tails from the bodies at 4 minutes increasingly, and then the numbers ranged to 80% at 13 minutes after the encounter. But very few cercariae could actually invade into the epidermis of the fish. 2. When Cyprinus carpio nudes were exposed to a number of cercariae in the beaker, only a few cercariae could invade through the epidermis. Most of the invaded cercariae were killed before forming the cyst. Also rare encysted cercariae were found to be dead within 48 hours. 3. Cyprinus carpio nudes were reared with Parafossarulus manchouricus shedding numerous cercariae in the indoor aquarium. When observed after 12 days, to determine the susceptibility, no metacercaria was found infected. 4. Cyprinus carpio nudum were reared with Parafossarulus manchouricus shedding numerous cercariae in Kimhae lake for 2 months in summer of 1982, in order to check the natural infection. No metacercaria of Clonorchis sinensis was found from the fish. 5. In the cases of control fish, Pseudoraibora larva, numerous cercariae were inspected on the course of invasion through epidermis of the fish under the stereomicroscope. And many metacercariae were also found from the Ssh whenever they were kept in beaker, indoor aquarium, or the lake for natural infection. The results suggested that Cyprinus carpio kudus might not be proper intermediate host of Clonorchis sinensis.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.47-54
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• 2017

The prevalence of cercarial infection in freshwater snails and their evolutionary trends were studied in Nakhon Nayok province, Thailand. A total of 2,869 individual snails were examined for parasitic infections. The results showed that 12 snail species were found to host larval stages of trematodes with an overall prevalence of 4.7%. The infected specimens included 7 types at the cercarial stage; cercariae, megalurous cercariae, echinostome cercariae, furcocercous cercariae, parapleurolophocercous cercariae, virgulate cercariae, and xiphidiocercariae. Regarding molecular identification, ITS2 sequence data of each larval trematode were analyzed, and a dendrogram was constructed using the neighbor-joining method with 10,000 replicates. The dendrogram was separated into 6 clades (order/family), including Echinostomatida/Echinostomatidae, Echinostomatida/Philophthalmidae, Opisthorchiida/Heterophyidae, Plagiorchiida/Prosthogonimidae, Plagiorchiida/Lecithodendriidae, and Strigeatida/Cyathocotylidae. These findings were used to confirm morphological characteristics and evolutionary trends of each type of cercariae discovered in Nakhon Nayok province. Furthermore, this investigation confirmed that the ITS2 data of cercariae could be used to study on phylogenetic relationships or to determine classification of this species at order and/or family level when possible.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.300-303
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• 1997

The present study was carried out to know the distribution of freshwater mollusk on the chinese liver fluke in the middle of August, 1997 at the upper area of Kyungan stream located in Yongin Kun, Kyungki province. The snails were collected from the shallow and irrigation route in a rural area located along the upper area of Kyungan stream. The snails collected by hand were brought to the laboratory and cercariae naturally shed from the snails, Parafossarulus manchouricus were examined. Parafossarulus manchouricus is medically important intermediated host of the transmission of digenetic trematoda to human. Each snail was placed in aerated tap water for the detection of ceracariae and examined for expelled cercariae. Infection rate of the cercariae of Clonorchis sinensis was 3 (1.5%) among 195 individuals collected in the habitat. The identification of the cercaria of Clonorchis sinensis was performed as described by Komiya and Tajimi.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.401-403
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• 1994

A total of 4149 Lymnaea auricularia var rufescens and 401 L. luteola snails were collected and examined in six periods from May, 1989 to April, 1990 at Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Fasciola cercariae (Gymnocephalous cercariae) was found in 13 (0.31%) L. auricularia var rufescens, but was absent in all L. luteola examined. Prevalence of Fasciola cercariae in the snails varied significantly (p < 0.05) in different periods (months) of the year with higher prevalence in July-August (0.77%), followed by September-October (0.52%) and May-June (0.45%). Cercariae did not appear in the snails from November to April.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.44 no.2 s.138
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• pp.127-131
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• 2006

The furcocercus cercariae of Neodiplostomum seoulense (Digenea: Neodiplostomidae) penetrate the skins of tadpoles and shed their tails. The speculated mechanism of this tail loss was physical efforts required to produce a vigorous zigzag motion during skin penetration; no other mechanism has been proposed. We examined the relationship between the host serum and cercarial tail loss. Cercariae of N. seoulense were collected from experimentally infected Segmentina hemisphaerula, and lots of 300 cercariae were cultured in medium 199 contained several types of sera. Cercarial tail degradation was induced in all media, but all the cercariae cultured except those cultured in media containing fetal bovine serum (FBS) died within 48 hr. After 72 hr cultivation in media containing FBS, cercarial tail degradation was induced in 67.0%; in continuous cultivation 13.3% of larvae survived for 7 days. Tail degradation did not occur in the absence of serum and when serum was heat inactivated at $56^{\circ}C$ for 30 min. The addition of 20 mM ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) blocked cercarial tail degradation completely. Moreover, the addition of 20 mM $MgCl_2$ restored tail degradation blocked by EDTA. These results suggest that the alternative complement pathway is related with the N. seoulense cercarial tail degradation induced by serum.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.121-136
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• 1986

Recently there have been some reports on human infections of Echinostoma hortense in Korea. It was found that a few species of freshwater fishes were playing the role of the second intermediate host of E. hortense. However, molluscan intermediate host has not been identified yet in Korea. The present study aimed to establish the life cycle of E. hortense in laboratory. Experimental studies such as egg production from the rat, development of the eggs in vitro, exposure of miracidia to freshwater snails, shedding pattern of cercariae from infected snails, morphology of cercariae, cercarial infection to the second intermediate host and infection of metacercariae to the definitive hosts were done. In addition, epidemiological surveys on the infection status in inhabitants and house rats, and on the natural infection of larval echinostomes in the snails and fishes were carried out along the South Hangang-river. The results obtained were as follows: 1. The eggs deposited from adults in physiological saline were cultivated at room temperature($20{\sim}24^{\circ}C$). The miracidia were firstly observed on 8 days after cultivation, and 85.5% of the eggs contained the mature miracidia on 11 days after cultivation. More than 90% formed the miracidia when cultivated at temperature $22{\sim}27^{\circ}C$. Hatching of the miracidia began on 12 days after cultivation and continued for a week. The size of the miracidia was $103.0{{\times}}51.4{\mu}m$ in average. The motility of the miracidia were active up to 8 hours after shedding, but they were all dead within 10 hours after shedding. 2. A freshwater snail, Radix auricularia coreana was cultivated in aquaria. A hatched $F_1$ snails from the egg masses were exposed to 20 miracidia respectively. Escape of cercariae started on 15 days after infecton. Radix auricularia coreana was experimentally identified as the first intermediate host of E. hortense in Korea. 3. Cercarial shedding started on $15{\sim}20$ days after infection by snail, continued for about 10 days (8.8 days in average). Infected snails were dead within 32 days after the miracidial infection. About 1,335 cercariae($328{\sim}1,994$) per snail were shed in its life, and 119 cercariae in average per snail per day were shed. The cercariae were motile for more than 24 hours, and then squirming at the bottom until death. The body and tail sizes of cercariae were $356{\times}186{\mu}m$ and $510{\times}68{\mu}m$ in average, respectively. The rediae parasitized in the snail hosts were found mainly around the pericardial regions, and their size was $1,575{\times}258{\mu}m$ in average. The numbers of developing cercariae in a mature redia were 14 in average ($7{\sim}20$ in range). The numbers of rediae in a snail were 102 in average on 15 days after miracidial infection and 221 in average on 28 days. 4. Three uninfected Misgurnus anguillicaudatus, less than 6.5cm long were used in for the cercarial infection. They were all exposed with 755 cercariae, and examined at 5-day intervals starting from 10 days after infection. All the fishes were infected with metacercariae of E. hortense and a total of 275 was found infected(36.4%). The metacercariae were fed to rats and the adult worms were obtained on 15 days after infection. 5. The infected rats began to deposit the eggs on 11 days after infection. The number of eggs deposited per day per worm (EPD/worm) was $400{\sim}500$ on 3 weeks after infection and was increased to $1,000{\sim}1,500$ on 4 to 17 weeks, then decreased to 800 on 21 weeks after infection. 6. A total of 745 stool specimens collected from 576 male and 169 female residents of 8 different villages along South Hangang basin was examined. Out of 745 specimens, the eggs of Echinostoma sp. were found in 2 cases (0.3%). Of 34 house rats one showed egg-positive (2.9%). 7. Total 971 Radix auricularia coreana collected from 7 sampling stations were examined for shedding of cercariae. Three snails (0.3%) shed the cercariae of E. hortense. A total of 119 out of 542 freshwater fishes (22.0%) had the metacercariae of E. hortense. The fishes parasitized with the metacercariae were 4 out of 14 examined species. The infection rates of 4 species were 34.1% (106 out of 311) in Misgurnus anguillicaudatus, 30.4% (7 out of 23) in Misgurnus mizolepis, 4.3% (2 out of 46) in Moroco oxycephalus and 22.2% (4 out of 18) in Odontobutis obscura interrupta. In summarizing the above results, the first intermediate host of E. hortense was found as Radix auricularia coreana in Korea. Also, it took about 46 days for the shortest completion of a life cycle of E. hortense in summer; that is, 10 days for miracidial development in eggs, 15 days for cercarial development in the snail, about 10 days for metacercarial development in the second intermediate hosts, and 11 days for the maturation as the adults in the definitive hosts. The natural infection rates of E. hortense in the intermediate hosts were relatively high but those in the definitive hosts were low in the middle areas of South Hangang basin.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.203-212
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• 1989

The development of Echinestcma cinetorchis in several snail species reared in laboratory aquaria was observed. The eggs from adult cukes collected from the intestine of rats were cultivated to miracidia, and exposed to Hippeutis sp. snails. Observations were made for cercarial shedding from the exposed snails. The cercariae shed from the snails were again exposed to several species of fresh water snails in order to observe metacercarial formation in the snails and their infectivity to final hosts. The results obtained in this study were as follows: 1. Twenty miracidia were exposed to each snail of Hippeutis sp. About 58.3% of the above snails (7 out of 12) were dead before shedding the cercariae, anti the remainder shed the cercariae for a period of 7 to 9 days before death. 2. Cercarial shedding from the infected snails started from the 25th day after the exposure to mi.acidia, and the total number of cercariae shed per snail was 684 in average (range; 482-904). 3. The sixte of refine developed in the infected Hippeutis sp. snails was 1$, 242{\times}214{\;}{\mu}m$ in average, and the number of rediae per snail was 350 in average (range; 120-510). 4. About 40 to 50 cercariae shed from the Hippeutis sp. snails were each exposed to several species of snails reared in the laboratory. The metacercarial formation was confirmed by dissecting the infected snails, 12 to 16 days after the infection. The infectivity to each snail species was 100% in Hippeutis sp. (recovery rate; 56.7%) and Radix auricuzaria coreana (recovery rate; 66.4%), 66.7% in Physa acute (recovery rate; 37.5%), and 50% in Cipangopaludina sp. (recovery rate; 8.0%), respectively. 5. The swimming cercariae attached first at the cephalo-podial part of the snails and then migrated to the mantle, internal organ s and hemocele areas to form the metacercariae. 6. Adult worms of E. cinetorchis were obtained from the rats infected with the metacercariae encysted in the experimental snails. Summarising the above results, it is suggested that the mud-snail (Cipangopaludina sp.) may play an important role as a source of human infection with E. cinetorchis in Korea, and that several species of fresh water snails are involved in the life cycle as a second intermediate host.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.62 no.1
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• pp.85-97
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• 2024

This study aimed to describe the morphological and molecular characteristics of Paralecithodendrium longiforme (Digenea: Lecithodendriidae) adults and cercariae isolated in Thailand. Adult flukes were isolated from the Chinese pipistrelle bat (Hypsugo sp.), and cercariae were detected in the viviparid snail (Filopaludina martensi martensi) from Chiang Mai province. The morphological characteristics were observed and described using conventional methods, and the molecular characteristics with internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) and 28S rDNA gene sequences. The adult flukes were fusiform, 0.84-0.98 mm in length, and 0.37-0.49 mm in width, and were distinguishable from other species by the presence of longitudinal uterine coils. The cercariae were nonvirgulate xiphidiocercariae, with the oral sucker bigger than the acetabulum, the tail without fin fold, a body size of 117.5-138.3×48.3-52.2 ㎛, and a tail size of 100.7-103.7×15.0-18.9 ㎛. Molecular studies revealed that the adults and cercariae shared 99.3% (ITS2) and 99.6% (28S rDNA) homology with each other. They were phylogenetically close to P. longiforme with an identity of 94.5% for ITS2 and 98.7% for 28S rDNA. This study provides new information on the natural definitive host and first intermediate host of P. longiforme in Thailand. The discovery of its cercarial stage in Filopaludina snails highlights the importance of monitoring the associated second intermediate host and prevention and control of this potentially zoonotic trematode.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.13-19
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• 2012

To determine the status of Korean molluscs infection and relation with climate change of Korean peninsula, references were reviewed. Wild animals serve as intermediate, reservoirs and paratenic hosts to zoonotic parasites of human beings. Trematode are common parasites of molluscs and almost all trematodes infect mollusks as the first host in the life cycle, and most have a complex life cycle involving other hosts. The significance of auxiliary hosts to the ecology of the parasite has not been proper discussion. There is increasing concern as to the impact of climate change on the epidermiology of many parasitic diseases. A total of 21 species for snail transmitted parasites from Korean molluscs has been reviewed. Among them, 15 species was aquatic mollusks and 6 species for marine mollusks. Maximum infections belonged to Semisulcospira livertina had 11 kind of parasite pathogenic organisms, including Paragonimus westermani, Metagonimus yokogawai, Centrocestus armatus, Notocotylus magniovatus, Centrocestus formosanus, incerte cercaria, nipponensis cercaria, Yoshidae cercaria, cristata cercaria, innominatum cercaria and Metagonimus sp. And 11 in Parafossarulus manchouricus including Clonorchis sinensis, Asymphylodora japonica, Cyathocotyle orientalis, Exorchis oviformis, Notocotylus attenuatus, Echinochasmus japonicus, Loxogenes liberum, Cercariae of Loxogenes liberum Type I, Cercariae of Loxogenes liberum Type II, Furcocercus cercariae (Family Sanguincolidae) and Cercaria of Mucobucaris, 10 in Semisulcospira sp. including Paragonimus westermani, Metagonimus yokogawai, Centrocestus armatus, Echinochasmus redioduplicatus, Notocotylus magniovatus, Cercaria incerte, Cercaria nipponensis, Cercaria yoshidae, paludinarum cercaria and Metagonimus sp., 7 in Koreanomelania globus including Pseudexorchis major, Cercaria of parapleurolophocercous type, Metagonimus sp. (A & B), Cercaria nipponensis, Cercaria inserta and Cercaria yoshidae. Also, Tapes philippinarum have 3 pathogenic organisms including Cercariae tapidis, Cercariae furcocercus and Parvatrema sp. In particular, under climatic extremes such as floods and drought, aquatic molluscs may play a more prominent role in parasite transmission in the future.