Hymenolepis nana

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Dwarf tapeworm
H nana adultF.JPG
Adult dwarf tapeworm
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Platyhelminthes
Class: Cestoda
Order: Cyclophyllidea
Family: Hymenolepididae
Genus: Hymenolepis
Species:
H. nana
Binomial name
Hymenolepis nana
(Bilharz, 1851) Ransom, 1901 [1]

Dwarf tapeworm (Hymenolepis nana, also known as Rodentolepis nana, Vampirolepis nana, Hymenolepis fraterna, and Taenia nana) is a cosmopolitan species though most common in temperate zones, and is one of the most common cestodes (a type of intestinal worm or helminth) infecting humans, especially children.

Contents

Morphology

As its name implies (Ancient Greek : νᾶνος, nānos – dwarf), it is a small species, seldom exceeding 40 mm long and 1 mm wide. The scolex bears a retractable rostellum armed with a single circle of 20 to 30 hooks. The scolex also has four suckers, or a tetrad. The neck is long and slender, and the segments are wider than long. Genital pores are unilateral, and each mature segment contains three testes. After apolysis, gravid segments disintegrate, releasing eggs, which measure 30 to 47 μm in diameter. The oncosphere is covered with a thin, hyaline, outer membrane and an inner, thick membrane with polar thickenings that bear several filaments. The heavy embryophores that give taeniid eggs their characteristic striated appearance are lacking in this and the other families of tapeworms infecting humans. The rostellum remains invaginated in the apex of the organ. Rostellar hooklets are shaped like tuning forks. The neck is long and slender, the region of growth. The strobila starts with short, narrow proglottids, followed with mature ones.

Life cycle

Life cycle of H. nana inside and outside of the human body Hymenolepis nana Life Cycle.tif
Life cycle of H. nana inside and outside of the human body
Hymenolepis nana life cycle H nana LifeCycle.gif
Hymenolepis nana life cycle

Infection is acquired most commonly from eggs in the feces of another infected individual, which are transferred in food, by contamination. Eggs hatch in the duodenum, releasing oncospheres, which penetrate the mucosa and come to lie in lymph channels of the villi. An oncosphere develops into a cysticercoid which has a tail and a well-formed scolex. It is made of longitudinal fibers and is spade-shaped with the rest of the worm still inside the cyst. In five to six days, cysticercoids emerge into the lumen of the small intestine, where they attach and mature.

The direct life cycle is doubtless a recent modification of the ancestral two-host life cycle found in other species of hymenolepidids, because cysticercoids of H. nana can still develop normally within larval fleas and beetles. One reason for facultative nature of the life cycle is that H. nana cysticercoids can develop at higher temperatures than can those of the other hymenolepidids. Direct contaminative infection by eggs is probably the most common route in human cases, but accidental ingestion of an infected grain beetle or flea cannot be ruled out. The direct infectiousness of the eggs frees the parasite from its former dependence upon an insect intermediate host, making rapid infection and person-to-person spread possible. The short lifespan and rapid course of development also facilitate the spread and ready availability of this worm.

Reproduction

An egg of dwarf tapeworm H nana eggB.JPG
An egg of dwarf tapeworm

Hymenolepis nana, like all tapeworms, contains both male and female reproductive structures in each proglottid. This means that the dwarf tapeworm, like other tapeworms is hermaphroditic. Each segment contains three testes and a single ovary. When a proglottid becomes old and unable to absorb any more nutrition, it is released and is passed through the host's digestive tract. This gravid proglottid contains the fertilized eggs, which are sometimes expelled with the feces. However, most of the time, the egg may also settle in the microvilli of the small intestine, hatch, and the larvae can develop to sexual maturity without ever leaving the host.

Behavior

The dwarf tapeworm, like all other tapeworms, lacks a digestive system and feeds by absorption on nutrients in the intestinal lumen. They have nonspecific carbohydrate requirements and they seem to absorb whatever is being passed through the intestine at that time. When it becomes an adult, it attaches to the intestinal walls with its suckers and toothed rostellum and has its segments reaching out into the intestinal space to absorb food.

Epidemiology

The dwarf tapeworm or Hymenolepis nana is found worldwide. More common in warm parts of South Europe, Russia, India, US and Latin America. Infection is most common in children, in persons living in institutional settings, crowded environments and in people who live in areas where sanitation and personal hygiene is inadequate. Infection is most common in children aged 4–10 years, in dry, warm regions of the developing world. Estimated to have 50-75 million carriers of Hymenolopis nana with 5 to 25% prevalence in children worldwide. One becomes infected by accidentally ingesting dwarf tapeworm eggs, ingesting fecally contaminated foods or water, by touching your mouth with contaminated fingers, or by ingesting contaminated soil, and/or accidentally ingesting an infected arthropod.

United States:

International:

Pathogenesis

Light infections:

Heavy infections:

For young children:

Treatment

The prescription drug Praziquantel is usually prescribed in a single dose to patients infected with H.nana. Praziquantel is widely used and preferred due to its high efficacy. Research has shown that the cysticercoid phase of H.nana's life cycle is the most susceptible to the Praziquantel treatment. [2]

In 1980, research proved that Praziquantel had morphological effects on H.nana and other similar cestodes. Following ten minutes of Praziquantel administration, H. nana was almost completely paralyzed; thirty minutes post-administration, the tapeworms were completely dislodged from the caecum. This research fully indicated the paralyzing and deadly nature of Praziquantel on H. nana, H. diminuta, H. microstoma. [3]

History

In 1887, Grassi demonstrated that transmission from rat to rat did not require an intermediate host. [4] Later, in 1921, Saeki demonstrated a direct cycle of transmission of H. nana in humans, transmission without an intermediate host. In addition to the direct cycle, Nicholl and Minchin demonstrated that fleas can serve as intermediate hosts between humans. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hymenolepiasis</span> Medical condition

Hymenolepiasis is infestation by one of two species of tapeworm: Hymenolepis nana or H. diminuta. Alternative names are dwarf tapeworm infection and rat tapeworm infection. The disease is a type of helminthiasis which is classified as a neglected tropical disease.

<i>Taenia solium</i> Species of Cestoda

Taenia solium, the pork tapeworm, belongs to the cyclophyllid cestode family Taeniidae. It is found throughout the world and is most common in countries where pork is eaten. It is a tapeworm that uses humans as its definitive host and pigs as the intermediate or secondary hosts. It is transmitted to pigs through human feces that contain the parasite eggs and contaminate their fodder. Pigs ingest the eggs, which develop into larvae, then into oncospheres, and ultimately into infective tapeworm cysts, called cysticercus. Humans acquire the cysts through consumption of uncooked or under-cooked pork and the cysts grow into adult worms in the small intestine.

<i>Taenia</i> (flatworm) Genus of flatworms

Taenia is the type genus of the Taeniidae family of tapeworms. It includes some important parasites of livestock. Members of the genus are responsible for taeniasis and cysticercosis in humans, which are types of helminthiasis belonging to the group of neglected tropical diseases. More than 100 species are recorded. They are morphologically characterized by a ribbon-like body composed of a series of segments called proglottids; hence the name Taenia. The anterior end of the body is the scolex. Some members of the genus Taenia have an armed scolex ; of the two major human parasites, Taenia saginata has an unarmed scolex, while Taenia solium has an armed scolex.

<i>Taenia saginata</i> Species of flatworm

Taenia saginata, commonly known as the beef tapeworm, is a zoonotic tapeworm belonging to the order Cyclophyllidea and genus Taenia. It is an intestinal parasite in humans causing taeniasis and cysticercosis in cattle. Cattle are the intermediate hosts, where larval development occurs, while humans are definitive hosts harbouring the adult worms. It is found globally and most prevalently where cattle are raised and beef is consumed. It is relatively common in Africa, Europe, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Latin America. Humans are generally infected as a result of eating raw or undercooked beef which contains the infective larvae, called cysticerci. As hermaphrodites, each body segment called proglottid has complete sets of both male and female reproductive systems. Thus, reproduction is by self-fertilisation. From humans, embryonated eggs, called oncospheres, are released with faeces and are transmitted to cattle through contaminated fodder. Oncospheres develop inside muscle, liver, and lungs of cattle into infective cysticerci.

<i>Dipylidium caninum</i> Species of flatworm

Dipylidium caninum, also called the flea tapeworm, double-pored tapeworm, or cucumber tapeworm is a cyclophyllid cestode that infects organisms afflicted with fleas and canine chewing lice, including dogs, cats, and sometimes human pet-owners, especially children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hymenolepididae</span> Family of flatworms

The Hymenolepididae are family of cyclophyllid tapeworms. Their characteristic feature is the small number of testes. The unilateral genital pores and large external seminal vesicle allow for easy recognition. Most species are small, transparent, and easy to study. The family contains over 90 genera with over 900 species, having as their definitive host birds or mammals. Most reside in the intestines of their definitive hosts. The majority of species with known lifecycles have arthropods as intermediate hosts.

<i>Hymenolepis diminuta</i> Species of flatworm

Hymenolepis diminuta, also known as rat tapeworm, is a species of Hymenolepis tapeworm that causes hymenolepiasis. It has slightly bigger eggs and proglottids than H. nana and infects mammals using insects as intermediate hosts. The adult structure is 20 to 60 cm long and the mature proglottid is similar to that of H. nana, except it is larger.

<i>Taenia pisiformis</i> Species of flatworm

Taenia pisiformis, commonly called the rabbit tapeworm, is an endoparasitic tapeworm which causes infection in lagomorphs, rodents, and carnivores. Adult T. pisiformis typically occur within the small intestines of the definitive hosts, the carnivores. Lagomorphs, the intermediate hosts, are infected by fecal contamination of grasses and other food sources by the definitive hosts. The larval stage is often referred to as Cysticercus pisiformis and is found on the livers and peritoneal cavities of the intermediate hosts. T. pisiformis can be found worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eucestoda</span> Subclass of flatworms

Eucestoda, commonly referred to as tapeworms, is the larger of the two subclasses of flatworms in the class Cestoda. Larvae have six posterior hooks on the scolex (head), in contrast to the ten-hooked Cestodaria. All tapeworms are endoparasites of vertebrates, living in the digestive tract or related ducts. Examples are the pork tapeworm with a human definitive host, and pigs as the secondary host, and Moniezia expansa, the definitive hosts of which are ruminants.

<i>Hymenolepis</i> (flatworm) Genus of worms

Hymenolepis is a genus of cyclophyllid tapeworms that cause hymenolepiasis. They parasitise mammals, including humans. Some notable species are:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cestoda</span> Class of flatworms

Cestoda is a class of parasitic worms in the flatworm phylum (Platyhelminthes). Most of the species—and the best-known—are those in the subclass Eucestoda; they are ribbon-like worms as adults, known as tapeworms. Their bodies consist of many similar units known as proglottids—essentially packages of eggs which are regularly shed into the environment to infect other organisms. Species of the other subclass, Cestodaria, are mainly fish infecting parasites.

Diphyllobothrium mansonoides is a species of tapeworm (cestodes) that is endemic to North America. Infection with D. mansonoides in humans can result in sparganosis. Justus F. Mueller first reported this organism in 1935. D. mansonoides is similar to D. latum and Spirometra erinacei. When the organism was discovered, scientist did not know if D. mansonoides and S. erinacei were separate species. PCR analysis of the two worms has shown the two to be separate but closely related organisms.

<i>Raillietina</i> Genus of flatworms

Raillietina is a genus of tapeworms that includes helminth parasites of vertebrates, mostly of birds. The genus was named in 1920 in honour of a French veterinarian and helminthologist, Louis-Joseph Alcide Railliet. Of the 37 species recorded under the genus, Raillietina demerariensis, R. asiatica, and R. formsana are the only species reported from humans, while the rest are found in birds. R. echinobothrida, R. tetragona, and R. cesticillus are the most important species in terms of prevalence and pathogenicity among wild and domestic birds.

<i>Raillietina echinobothrida</i> Species of flatworm

Raillietina echinobothrida is a parasitic tapeworm belonging to the class Cestoda. It is the most prevalent and pathogenic helminth parasite in birds, particularly in domestic fowl, Gallus domesticus Linnaeus, 1758. It requires two hosts, birds and ants, for completion of its life cycle. It is a hermaphrodite worm having both the male and female reproductive organs in its body. The parasite is responsible for 'nodular tapeworm disease' in poultry.

Taenia asiatica, commonly known as Asian taenia or Asian tapeworm, is a parasitic tapeworm of humans and pigs. It is one of the three species of Taenia infecting humans and causes taeniasis. Discovered only in 1980s from Taiwan and other East Asian countries as an unusual species, it is so notoriously similar to Taenia saginata, the beef tapeworm, that it was for a time regarded as a slightly different strain. But anomaly arose as the tapeworm is not of cattle origin, but of pigs. Morphological details also showed significant variations, such as presence of rostellar hooks, shorter body, and fewer body segments. The scientific name designated was then Asian T. saginata. But the taxonomic consensus turns out to be that it is a unique species. It was in 1993 that two Korean parasitologists, Keeseon S. Eom and Han Jong Rim, provided the biological bases for classifying it into a separate species. The use of mitochondrial genome sequence and molecular phylogeny in the late 2000s established the taxonomic status.

Moniezia expansa is commonly known as sheep tapeworm or double-pored ruminant tapeworm. It is a large tapeworm inhabiting the small intestines of ruminants such as sheep, goats and cattle. It has been reported from Peru that pigs are also infected. There is an unusual report of human infection in an Egyptian. It is characterized by unarmed scolex, presence of two sets of reproductive systems in each proglottid, and each proglottid being very short but very broad.

<i>Hymenolepis microstoma</i> Species of flatworm

Hymenolepis microstoma, also known as the rodent tapeworm, is an intestinal dwelling parasite. Adult worms live in the bile duct and small intestines of mice and rats, and larvae metamorphose in the haemocoel of beetles. It belongs to the genus Hymenolepis; tapeworms that cause hymenolepiasis. H. microstoma is prevalent in rodents worldwide, but rarely infects humans.

<i>Raillietina tetragona</i> Species of flatworm

Raillietina tetragona is a parasitic tapeworm belonging to the class Cestoda. It is a cosmopolitan helminth of the small intestine of pigeon, chicken and guinea fowl, and is found throughout the world.

Raillietina cesticillus is a parasitic tapeworm of the family Davaineidae. Sometimes called "Broad-headed tapeworm", it infects the small intestine of chicken and occasionally other birds, such as guinea fowl and turkey, which are generally in close proximity to backyard poultry. It is a relatively harmless species among intestinal cestodes in spite of a high prevalence. In fact it probably is the most common parasitic platyhelminth in modern poultry facilities throughout the world.

Bertiella mucronata is a species of Bertiella, a type of cestode tapeworms known to cause Bertielliasis. It belongs to the genus Bertiella, family Anoplocephalidae. This is one of two species of Bertiella that can cause the condition in humans.

References

  1. Deaderick, William H. (1906). "Hymenolepis Nana and Hymenolepis Diminuta, with Report of Cases". Journal of the American Medical Association. XLVII (25): 2087–2090. doi:10.1001/jama.1906.25210250041002.
  2. "Hymenolepis Nana - Dwarf Tapeworm". www.parasitesinhumans.org. Retrieved 2017-12-12.
  3. Chai, Jong-Yil (March 2013). "Praziquantel Treatment in Trematode and Cestode Infections: An Update". Infection & Chemotherapy. 45 (1): 32–43. doi:10.3947/ic.2013.45.1.32. ISSN   2093-2340. PMC   3780935 . PMID   24265948.
  4. Grassi B. Entwicklungscyclus der Taenia nanna. Dritte Praliminarnote. Centralblatt fṻr Bakteriologie und Parasitenkunde 1887;2:305-312.
  5. Marty AM and Neafie RC Hymenolepiasis and Miscellaneous Cyclophyllidiases pages 197–214 in Meyers WM, Neafie RC, Marty AM, Wear DJ. (Eds) Pathology of Infectious Diseases Volume I Helminthiases. Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Washington DC. 2000; "Item FS28". Archived from the original on 2010-12-27. Retrieved 2014-11-20.
6. Arora, H. S. (2017, January 6). Hymenolepiasis. Retrieved December 8, 2017, from https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/998498-overview#a6
7. C. (2012, January 10). Hymenolepiasis FAQs. Retrieved December 8, 2017, from https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/hymenolepis/faqs.html

Further reading