BACKGROUND The 29 kDa Schistosoma haematobium species-specific antigen (ShSSA) is of remarkable interest in the diagnosis of urinary schistosomiasis although it had not been fully characterized. METHOD To determine the biological importance of ShSSA in S. haematobium and pathogenesis of the disease, we immunolocalized ShSSA in schistosome eggshells, miracidia and adult worm sections using ind...

A comparative histopathological study of three snails species--Biomphalaria glabrata, B. tenagophila and B. straminea--which had been infected with Schistosoma mansoni miracidia revealed similar qualitative features; consisting of areas of sporocyst proliferation and differentiation associated with reactive host reaction, at the time they were actively eliminating great number of cercariae. How...

LOVERDE P. T. 1975. Scanning electron microscope observaticns on the miracidium of Schistosoma. International Journal&w Parasitology 5: 95-97. Miracidia of two specirs of Schistosoma, viz. haematobium and juponicum, were studied with the scanning electron microscope to more clearly visualize what is seen with the light microscope and the transmission electron microscope, and more specifically, ...

As large numbers of metacercariae of Fasciola hepatica are necessary for research, experimental infections of Galba truncatula and Pseudosuccinea columella with this digenean were carried out to determine the better intermediate host for metacercarial production and, consequently, the most profitable snail for decreasing the cost price of these larvae. Pre-adult snails (4 mm in shell height) or...

It is still imperative to develop a parasitological technique highly sensitive for diagnosing schistosomiasis in epidemiological and individual surveys. A simple and cheap hatching device with a collecting container was manufactured and tested under experimental conditions. Twelve Kato-Katz slides were performed as golden standard for comparison. Quantitative results can be carried out by count...

The development of sporocysts of Schistosoma mansoni was monitored in pigmented and albino Biomphalaria glabrata from Puerto Rico and Brazil. The snails were exposed individually to 20 miracidia, and sporocysts were allowed to develop for 3 to 12 weeks. Most of the immature sporocysts were found in the seminal receptacle sac and vas deferens during development. In contrast, mature daughter spor...