Effects of temperature and viscosity on miracidial and cercarial movement of Schistosoma mansoni: ramifications for disease transmission.

ABSTRACT: Parasites with complex life cycles can be susceptible to temperature shifts associated with seasonal changes, especially as free-living larvae that depend on a fixed energy reserve to survive outside the host. The life cycle of Schistosoma, a trematode genus containing some species that cause human schistosomiasis, has free-living, aquatic miracidial and cercarial larval stages that swim using cilia or a forked tail, respectively. The small size of these swimmers (150-350 µm) dictates that their propulsion is dominated by viscous forces. Given that viscosity inhibits the swimming ability of small organisms and is inversely correlated with temperature, changes in temperature should affect the ability of free-living larval stages to swim and locate a host. By recording miracidial and cercari

SUBMITTER: Nguyen KH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7102460 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature