"Man is the only animal which esteems itself rich in proportion to the number and voracity of its parasites" George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) Irish writer As a part of my graduate project, I collected some mosquito larvae and mounted one on a slide. The nematode and ticks are forthcoming! Click on the photos to enlarge.  Mosquito larvae in small vial of water Mosquito larva on slideHaving completed my graduate level course of Animal Parasitology in the Spring of 2017, I wanted to share images of parasites in various stages of development. These photos were taken through the eyepiece of a microscope with my cell phone in the laboratory setting at Northeastern State University. Many thanks to my professors, Dr. Craig Clifford and Dr. Mark Paulissen! Links to the Centers for Disease Control are provided for additional information.  promastigotes of Leishmania donovani (visceral leishmaniasis)  promastigotes of Leishmania tropica (cutaneous leishmaniasis)  trophozoite of Giardia duodenalis  trypomastigotes of Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense (trypanosomiasis, East African sleeping sickness)  trypomastigote of Trypanosoma cruzi (Chagas disease, American trypanosomiasis)  gametocyte and trophozoites of Plasmodium falciparum (malaria)  tachyzoites of Toxoplasma gondii (toxoplasmosis)  trophozoites of Trichomonas vaginalis (trichomoniasis)   egg and adult of Clonorchis sinensis (clonorchiasis)  microfilaria of Dirofilaria immitis (dog heartworm)   egg and adult of Trichuris trichiura (human whipworm)   egg and adult male of Schistosoma haemotobium   egg and adult male of Schistosoma mansoni   egg and adult male of Schistosoma japonicum   egg and adult female of Enterobius vermicularis (pinworms)  scolex of Taenia solium (pork tapeworm)  cysticercus of Taenia solium   proglottid and scolex of Diphyllobothrium latum (the fish or broad tapeworm), the largest human tapeworm    eggs, mature proglottid and gravid proglottid of Dipylidium caninum (the double-pored dog tapeworm) mainly infects dogs and cats  eggs of Ascaris lumbricoides - the largest nematode (roundworm) parasitizing the human intestine   egg and adult male Necator americanus (human hookworm) For more than three centuries, a plague of unshakable lethargy blanketed the American South. It began with “ground itch,” a prickly tingling in the tender webs between the toes, which was soon followed by a dry cough. Weeks later, victims succumbed to an insatiable exhaustion and an impenetrable haziness of the mind that some called stupidity. Adults neglected their fields and children grew pale and listless. Victims developed grossly distended bellies and “angel wings”—emaciated shoulder blades accentuated by hunching. All gazed out dully from sunken sockets with a telltale “fish-eye” stare. The culprit behind “the germ of laziness,” as the South’s affliction was sometimes called, was Necator americanus—the American murderer. Better known today as the hookworm, millions of those bloodsucking parasites lived, fed, multiplied, and died within the guts of up to 40% of populations stretching from southeastern Texas to West Virginia. Hookworms stymied development throughout the region and bred stereotypes about lazy, moronic Southerners. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/nature/how-a-worm-gave-the-south-a-bad-name/  adult male Ancyclostoma duodenale (human hookworm)   adult worm and hydatid cyst of Echinococcus granulosus (hydatid disease) The remaining images are vectors for disease.   female and male heads of Aedes species of mosquito    larva and heads of female and male Anopheles species mosquito      egg raft, larva, pupa, and heads of female and male Culex species mosquito  Phthirus pubis, the pubic or crab louse  Sarcoptes scabiei var. hominis, the human itch mite   female and male Ctenocephalides species of flea   |
