Laboratory experiments were designed to select nematophagous fungi that were able to survive in vitro conditions simulating passage through the gastro-intestinal tract of cattle. All of the tests were conducted at 39°C. In a primary stress selection step in diluted rumen fluid, 21 isolates were obtained. Each of the primary stress selected isolates was tested in synthetic saliva, rumen fluid simulating the activity in the rumen, rumen fluid followed by pepsin-hydrochloric acid treatment simulating the additional effect of ruminal and abomasal activity, pepsin-hydrochloric acid solution simulating conditions in the abomasum and finally in a trypsin solution as an example of enzyme activity in the gut. The effect of the rumen fluid alone, or rumen fluid followed by pepsin-hydrochloric acid treatment, were responsible for the reduction in surviving fungal isolates. Only six of thirteen isolates belonging to the genus Arthrobotrys survived while seven of eight isolates of the genus Duddingtonia survived. Fourteen isolates were tested for their predatory capacity in a dung pat bioassay. Fungi of the genera Arthrobotrys and Duddingtonia reduced the development of Ostertagia ostertagi third stage larvae by approximately 75% and 96% respectively compared to the number of larvae that developed from fungus-free control pats.

The different routes of infection of Paragonimus westermani (diploid type) in the freshwater crab, Geothelphusa dehaani, were experimentally confirmed by various methods. In all the experiments, P. westermani metacercariae were recovered from the muscles, gills and liver of the infected crabs with the cercariae, although they were smaller than those of naturally infected ones. This is the first experimental evidence that G. dehaani is infected by both oral feeding and percutaneous contact with P. westermani (diploid type) cercariae.

During the 1990 grazing season, ants found attached to plants were collected from sheep pastures at monthly intervals and examined for Dicrocoelium metacercariae. The species Formica pratensis and F. rufibarbis showed average metacercarial intensities of 76 and 38 respectively. In addition to the ant species, the intensity of infection was found to be dependent on the length of the ant. The volume of metacercarial cysts was influenced by the intensity per ant relative to ant length but not by the ant species or the time of ant collection.

A description is given of three contrasting adhesive attitudes exhibited by three species of capsalid monogeneans from the gills of three different species of teleost fish from Heron Island, Queensland, Australia. The proximal end of the primary lamella of the coral trout, Plectropomus maculatus has a wide inner border, free from secondary lamellae, on each flat face. The haptor of Trochopus plectropomi is small enough to attach to this flat surface without folding. Benedenia sp. 1 attaches itself to the gills of stripey, Lutjanus carponatatus, by folding the haptor longitudinally around the inner edge of the primary lamella. Most specimens of T. plectropomi and all specimens of Benedenia sp. 1 were orientated with the anterior end projecting towards the tip of the primary lamella. Benedenia sp. 2 generally prefers relatively flat surfaces in the gill chamber but is more versatile in its choice of attachment sites on its host, the blacktip cod, Epinephelus fasciatus; two specimens were attached to the gill arch, one to a gill raker and one to the dorsal pharyngeal tooth pad.

The survival of first-stage larvae of a laboratory strain of Muellerius capillaris and of a natural multispecific infection (Neostrongylus linearis, Cystocaulus nigrescens, Protostrongylus rufescens) was studied for 10 to 12 day periods. The survival was estimated either on larvae in faeces or kept in tap water. Temperature (−18°C to 37°C) and desiccation were the ecological factors investigated. M. capillaris was the most tolerant to these factors but showed better survival at 4°C (and at − 18°C on one occasion). N. linearis survived better at 25°C or − 18°C and C. nigrescens at 4°C and − 18°C. Humidification of faeces was unfavourable to the latter species. All the species could stand desiccation of faeces up to 67% of dry-matter for M. capillaris or 82% for other species. Larval survival estimated for L1 in tap water was different from that estimated for larvae in faeces. The variation in resistance to unfavourable temperatures or moisture conditions may account partly for the geographical distribution of the species

The life-cycle of Pleurogenoides ovatus Rao, 1977, infecting the frogs, Rana tigrina and R. cyanophlyctis has been elucidated. All the life-cycle stages from egg to egg-producing adults were successfully established in the laboratory. The life-cycle took about 80 days for completion. Cercariae were found in the freshwater snail, Digoniostoma pulchella, collected from paddy fields at Chelembra, Malappuram district of Kerala, during the monsoon months. Cercariae are of the virgulate xiphidiocercous type. Metacercariae occurred in the connective tissues, hepatopancreas and musculature of the freshwater crab, Paratelphusa hydrodromous. The growth and development of the metacercariae in P. hydrodromous have been studied in detail. Frogs became infected when they fed on infected crabs. The prepatent period is 10 days.

Testicular examination of male Onchocerca dukei and German O. tarsicola revealed five pairs of chromosomes, which is typical of most filariae. In contrast to German O. tarsicola, specimens from Sweden had only three pairs of chromosomes.

Two cases of intestinal obstruction due to Ascaris lumbricoides infection are reported from Ishaka Adventist Hospital, in south western Uganda. One was a male aged two and a half years and another was a female aged twenty. They were both treated surgically with good results. A review of the literature also revealed that intestinal obstruction due to A. lumbricoides is a common complication, though other surgical and nutritional complications also seem to be common, they are less reported.

The influence of nonspecific immunomodulation on the course of experimental infection was examined in larval cestodosis (Mesocestoides corti) and ascaridosis (Ascaris suum) in mice. Immunosuppressive treatment (with azathioprine or hydrocortisone) resulted in a decrease of resistance in both models. The subsequent administration of T-activin to immunosuppressed mice led to the restoration of resistance to a level equal to that of untreated control mice. The administration of different immunomodulators partially protected mice against M. corti (T-activin. thymomodulin) or A. suum (T-activin. thymomodulin. thymosin fr.5. bursa-activin) infection. The protective effect of different treatments did not correlate with the level of specific antibody in the sera of infected mice. These results, which confirmed the decisive role of T-cell immunity in the resistance to the helminth infections, raise the possibility of the use of immunomodulators (thymic preparations) in the immunoprophylaxis of helminthoses.

The methylations of trematode genomic DNA were analyzed using restriction enzymes and Southern blot hybridization. Restriction enzymes MspI, HpaII, HhaI were used to probe CpG methylation while MboI, Sau3A, DpnI were used for A methylation. The results revealed that Opisthorchis viverrini, Fasciola gigantica and Gigantocotyle siamensis had neither CpG nor A methylations. The presence of highly repeated DNA elements was also demonstrated in O. viverrini genomic DNA.

Experiments were carried out to obtain additional data concerning the role of IgM antibodies, specific for the cuticular surface of the microfilariae (mf) of A. viteae, in clearing microfilaraemia from high-and low-responder mice infected by transplanted adult worms. Although BALB/c mice, which sustain a chronic microfilaraemia, produced IgM mf surface-specific antibodies, the binding to target mf was weak when compared to that of antibodies from the serum of the resistant C57BL/10 mice. Furthermore, antibodies from BALB/c mice were not as efficient as those from C57BL/10 mice in promoting the adherence of immune or control leukocytes to mf in vitro. Evidence is provided to show that mf shed surface bound antibody. Although the results do not establish conclusively the mechanism underlying the contrasting response phenotypes of C57BL/10 and BALB/c mice, they provide support for the involvement of antibody in controlling microfilaraemia and suggest that quantitative and qualitative differences in the amount and affinity of IgM antibody specific for the mf surface, together with the natural tendency of the mf to shed surface bound antibody at 37°C. may combine to allow the former strain to clear microfilaraemia efficiently whilst the latter sustains a chronic infection.

The effects of larval stages of Ascaris lumbricoides on human blood clotting was studied in vitro. Extracts and excretory/secretory products of third-stage larvae (L3) and late third-stage larvae (LL3) cultured from ova obtained from infected patients were analysed for anti-coagulant activity. Prothrombin time (PT) was prolonged by the addition of either whole extract of L3/LL3 or ES products of L3/LL3 as compared to controls. Partial thromboplastin time with kaolin (PTTK) was also prolonged on the addition of either extracts of ES products of L3/LL3. The prolongation of PTTK was significantly higher with extracts/ES products of L3 when compared to the extracts/ES products of LL3 (p<0.005). Thrombin time (TT) was prolonged by extracts of L3/LL3 and their ES products.

In Turkana, Kenya, a prevalence of hydatidosis of nearly 10% has been recorded among the pastoralists yet their livestock have a much lower prevalence of the disease. The present study investigated the release from dogs and subsequent survival of Echinococcus eggs in Turkana huts, water-holes and in the semi-arid environment. The results were compared with the survival of eggs of Taenia hydatigena and T. saginata. The study was repeated under the cooler and moister conditons found in Maasailand where livestock have a greater incidence of hydatid disease than in Turkana but where the incidence in man is ten times lower. The average number of Echinococcus eggs per proglottid is 823. Nine percent of these remain in proglottids 15 minutes after release from a dog and the released eggs lose their viability in less than two, 48 and 300 hours in the sun, huts and water in Turkana respectively; the major influencing factor being temperature. The greater survival of eggs in the houses, coupled with the fact that dogs congregate for most of the day in the small houses facilitating a close man:dog contact, provide ideal conditions for the trasmission of the parasite to man. The hostile environmental conditions and lack of contact between dogs and livestock contributes to the lower infection rate in livestock. Conversely in Maasailand, Echinococcus eggs survive in the environment for longer than three weeks and in addition, dogs are used for herding. This partly explains the higher infection rate among Maasai livestock but the low human infection rate remains arcane and requires further study. The rapid mortality of the majority of Echinococcus eggs in Turkana suggests that control measures aimed at dog control and a decreased man:dog contact should have a profound effect on the incidence of the disease in an area intrinsically unsuitable for the parasites' survival.

In the present communication we have studied the isoenzymatic pattern activity of the glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) in Oesophagostomum venulosum, Trichuris ovis and T. suis, parasites of Capra hircus (goat), Ovis aries (sheep) and Sus scrofa domestica (pig) respectively, by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Different phenotypes have been observed in the G6PD isoenzymatic pattern activity in males and females of Oesophagostomum venulosum. Furthermore, G6PD activity has been assayed in Trichuris ovis collected from Ovis aries and Capra hircus. No differences have been observed in the isoenzymatic patterns attending to the different hosts. All the individuals exhibited one single band or two bands; this suggests a monomeric condition for G6PD in T. ovis. In T. suis the enzyme G6PD appeared as a single electrophoretic band in about 85·7% of the individuals.

Fifty children aged 6 to 13 years and infected with Ascaris lumbricoides were selected for the study. The number of eggs laid daily by a female Ascaris increased with increase in its length, weight and diameter. Female worms became mature and started laying eggs when they reached a length of 118 mm. Adult female worms measuring 3·7 mm or more in diameter were found to be mature. The minimum weight of a worm producing eggs was 1·1 g. On average the number of eggs produced by the female decreased with increase in the worm load.

Stomach intubation is the most common method used in the experimental infection of animals with Angiostrongylus cantonensis. In order to compare the effectiveness of other possible transmission methods, groups of BALB/c mice were given infective third-stage larvae of A. cantonensis by different routes including intraperitoneal or subcutaneous injections, and penetration of anal mucosa, vaginal mucosa, conjunctival mucosa, lacerated skin, unabraded skin, foot pad and tail skin, while stomach intubation was used as control. Recovery of fifth-stage larvae was higher in mice inoculated with third-stage larvae subcutaneously. Successful infections were established through all experimental transmission routes except tail skin penetration. This study suggests that oral infection may not be the only route for the transmission of human angiostrongyliasis, and subcutaneous infection may be a better method for experimental infection.

Because of the negative binomial distribution of filarial third stage larvae (L3) in their vectors, under natural conditions only a few are usually transferred per bite. After an inoculation of 5 L3 per animal into eight host animals at least one developed a long lasting patency based on one reproductive female only. After an inoculation of 15 L3, three of eight animals developed long lasting patency, harbouring between two and five fertile females. The rates of adult stages recovered were 0·43 and 0·30 respectively. The parasitaemias of the six patent animals in both experimental groups increased with the number of reproductive females present (r=0·89, p=<0·005). All non-patent animals which were mf-negative in the pleural fluid and lung blood as well had a single sex or no worm load. In only one animal was there an apparently normal but non-reproductive pair of worms without any pathological alterations of the host animal. Encapsulated adult worms were found rarely, but independent of the final worm load or inoculation dose and always beside normal adults. In three of the 16 animals inoculated with 5 or 15 L3 patency passed after 10–12 weeks p.i., in two others it seemed to pass soon. After inoculation of 30, 40 or 60 L3 per animal patency passed early in about one half of 105 animals, when they were observed up to 24–36 weeks p.i. In conclusion all types of host defensive reactions are already visible after inoculation with such small doses. Nevertheless even a single inoculation of 5 L3 may give rise to a patent animal and its microfilaraemia is sufficient for transmission under natural conditions. Higher inoculation doses increase the defensive reactions which nevertheless remain unable to destroy all invasive stages.

The protein content of fresh homogenates and their corresponding TCA precipitated fractions of 10 different species of helminths was estimated by the methods of Lowry et al. and Spector using the Folin phenol reagent and Coomassie brilliant blue G-250 respectively. The former method gives exaggerated values as compared to the latter method. The parasite phenols, phenolic proteins and catecholamines could be responsible for interference in the Lowry's procedure. The TCA non-precipitable moieties also give colour only with the Folin phenol assay. The pronounced intra-specific differences in the total protein content of helminths reflect their metabolic variations and adaptations. Habitat does not appear to influence the protein content of parasites, however, the effect of host variation was evident in the pouched amphistome G. crumenifer. It is concluded that the dye binding method gives more consistent results and it can be conveniently applied to crude tissue homogenates of helminths.