This Week in Parasitism

Vincent and Dickson discuss the life cycle and pathogenesis of the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma . Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Metacyclic trypanomastigote (jpg) Tsetse fly (jpg) T. brucei life cycle (jpg) T. brucei parasitemia (jpg) Kissing bug nymph (jpg) T. cruzi life cycle (jpg) Letters read on TWiP 15

Vincent and Dickson consider the life cycle and pathogenesis of the protozoan parasite  Leishmania . Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: L. braziliensis life cycle ( jpg ) L. donovani life cycle ( jpg ) L. tropica life cycle ( jpg ) L. major lesion ( jpg ) Transgenic mosquito delivers Leishmania vaccine (thanks, Geoffrey) Plasmodium falciparum accompanied...

Vincent and Dickson continue their discussion of the obligate intracellular protozoan Toxoplasma gondii with a consideration of the clinical consequences of infection and pathogenesis. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Isopod fish parasites (thanks, Kevin!) Farmscraper on Word Spy (thanks, Mitchell!) Toxoplasma and personalities (thanks, Greg!) Science p...

Vincent and Dickson introduce the obligate intracellular protozoan Toxoplasma gondii , one of the most successful parasites on earth. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Global clinical burden of malaria ( PLoS Medicine ) T. gondii sporulated oocysts ( jpg ) T. gondii tachyzoites in parasitophorous vacuole ( jpg ) T. gondii life cycle ( jpg ) Insect bioter...

Vincent and Dickson continue their discussion of malaria, with emphasis on clinical aspects of the disease. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: The quest for a malaria vaccine ( Meet the Scientist 49 ) Science issue on malaria and tuberculosis Malaria pathogenesis ( pdf ) Malaria pathogenesis ( jpg ) Letters read on TWiP 11

Vincent and Dickson trace the life cycle of  Plasmodium in a mosquito and in a human host. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Mosquito cycle - sporogany ( jpg ) Plasmodium falciparum cycle ( jpg ) Plasmodium vivax cycle ( jpg ) Plasmodium falciparum ring forms and gametocytes in blood ( jpg ) Plasmodium stages ( jpg ) Letters read on TWiP 10

Vincent and Dickson move on to protozoan parasites with a discussion of the early history of malaria. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Malaria history at CDC Radio New Zealand show on hookworms (thanks James!) Tapeworm brain infection serious health concern (thanks Jim!) Pig farmers try to limit pork tapeworm spread (thanks Gopal!) Bizarre tongue-eating...

Dickson reads his story about sparganosis caused by the diphyllobothroid tapeworm  Spirometra mansonoides . Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Spirometra life cycle ( jpg ) Dickson on vertical farming ( CNN episode on YouTube , thanks Jesse!) Laboratory identification of parasites ( CDC , thanks Michael!) Gold nanoparticles take out brain parasite ( Cosmo...

Vincent and Dickson continue their discourse on tapeworms, covering the fish and dog varieties. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: FAT the enemy that is shortening your life is BANISHED. How? With sanitized tapeworms. Easy to swallow! ( jpg ). D. latum life cycle ( jpg ) D. latum adult ( jpg ) Diphyllobothrim proglottid ( jpg ) Diphyllobothrim bothria ( j...

Vincent and Dick talk about the anatomy and life cycle of beef and pork tapeworms, and why House was wrong about neurocysticercosis. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Taenia saginata life cycle (jpg) Taenia saginata adult (jpg) Taenia saginata scolex (jpg) Taenia saginata gravid proglottid (jpg) Taenia solium life cycle (jpg) Taenia solium adult (jpg) Ta...

Vincent and Dick discuss the nurse cell, a unique structure formed in the host muscle by Trichinella species. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Infective muscle larva ( jpg ) Schematic of a larva invading a muscle cell Nurse cell formation ( scroll down the page ) Dickson's gallery of Trichinella images Electron micrographs of stichocytes Weekly Science...

Vincent and Dick trace the life cycle of  Trichinella spiralis in an infected host. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: Trichinella life cycle (jpg) Newborn larva entering muscle cell (jpg) Adult  T. spiralis in columnar epithelial cell  (jpg) Adult female T. spiralis (jpg) Infective first stage  T. spiralis larva in Nurse cell in muscle tissue (jpg) Adult...

Vincent and Dick distinguish among intracellular and extracellular parasites, then discuss the history and general characteristics of  Trichinella spiralis . Host links:  Vincent Racaniello and  Dickson Despommier Links for this episode: The History of Trichinella at  Trichinella.org Parasite genome databases at the European Bioinformatics Institute List of parasite genome projects Weekly Science...

Vincent and Dick classify parasites according to whether or not they are transmitted by a vector, then consider the implications of long-lived parasites. Host links:  Vincent Racaniello and  Dickson Despommier

Vincent and Dick provide an overview of parasites and parasitism. Host links: Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier Weekly Science Picks Dick  T he Black Cloud by Fred Hoyle Vincent Parasitic Diseases by Despommier et al.