Parastrongyloides trichosuri

 

Contents

  

Rev 03/14/2025

  Classification Biology and Ecology
Morphology and Anatomy Life Cycle
Return to Parastrongyloides Menu   Ecosystem Functions and Services
Distribution Management
Return to Strongyloididae Menu Feeding  References
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Classification:

Class:    Chromadorea
SubOrder: Rhabditia
Order:    Rhabditida 
Suborder: Tylenchina
Superfamily Strongyloidoidea
Family:  Strongyloididae

  Parastrongyloides trichosuri Mackerras, 1959

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Morphology and Anatomy:

A species with both parasitic and free-living adult generations

Parastrongyloides trichosuri  (b) free-living adult male, bar 100 um; (c) free-living adult female, bar 100 um; (d) infective larva, bar 100 um; (e) parasitic adults, male at the top, female at the bottom, bar 1 mm.
from Grant et al. 2006

 

Males:

Free-living Male:

Female:

Free-living Female:

Parasitic Female:

Ref:

 

Reported median body size for this species (Length mm; width micrometers; weight micrograms) - Click:

 
 
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Distribution:

Reported from Australia as intestinal parasites of Australian Brush-tailed possums.  (Trichosurus spp.)

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Feeding:

  An intestinal parasite feeding on intestinal mucose. The nematode also has the ability for adults to multiply in the free-living stage, presumably feeding on microbes in fecal material.  Thereby inoculum potential is increased outside the definitive host.

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Biology and Ecology:

  

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Life Cycle:

Parastrongyloides trichosur has the ability to complete multiple reproductive cycles in a free-living condition. That increases the numbers of its infective third stage juvweniles in feces of the definitive host and therefore its inoculum potential as a perasite (Grant at al., 2006).



Free-living and parasitic life cycles of Parastrongyloides tricosuri
from Grant et al., 2006
The infective larvae of P. trichosuri penetrate the skin of the possum host and arrive in the lungs within 2–3 days, from where 20–30% of the inoculating dose can be recovered. Somewhat less (10–20% of the inoculating dose) can be recovered from the gut approximately 5–7 days p.i. (Crook et al., 2005). The adult male and female parasites are usually located in the anterior half of the small intestine in loose association with the mucosal surface from which they are easily recovered with gentle scraping.
Parasitic adults differ in size and morphology from the freeliving adults.  Eggs are passed fully embryonated and hatch in less than 24 h at temperatures >15C. There is no evidence of hatching or larval development of worms in feces dissected from the bowel before being passed (Grant et al., 2006)..

 

Ecophysiological Parameters:

For Ecophysiological Parameters for this species, click If species level data are not available, click for genus level parameters
 
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Ecosystem Functions and Services:

 

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Management:

 

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References:

Crook, M., Thompson, F.J., Grant, W.N., Viney, M.E., 2005. daf-7 and the development of Strongyloides ratti and Parastrongyloides trichosuri. Mol. Biochem. Parasitol. 139: 213-221.

Grant, W.N., Stasiuk, S., Newton-Howes, J., Ralston, M., Bisset, S.A., Heath, D.D., Shoemaker, C.N. 2006. Parastrongyloides trichosuri, a nematode parasite of mammals that is uniquely suited to genetic analysis. Int. J. Parasitol. 36:453-466.

 

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Copyright © 1999 by Howard Ferris.
Revised: March 14, 2025.