Development of human and mouse strain of Hymenolepis nana in mice

Ferretti G., Gabriele F. and Palmas C. 1981. Development of human and mouse strain of Hymenolepis nana in mice. International Journal for Parasitology11: 425–430. An Hymenolepis nana strain isolated from human faeces was transferred in the mouse. At first, the q ratio (the number of parasites to the number of eggs used) was very low. After 10 passages adaptation was complete: when mice of different age and strain (CD₁ and BDF₁) were infected with eggs of the above strain and eggs of 2 different murine strains, no differences emerged in the q ratio or in the parasite mean dry weight. Survival also appeared the same in the 3 parasite strains, however, human and murine strains live for a shorter time in BDF₁ than in CD₁ mice. Discussion bears on the hypothesis that the difficulties that emerge during the first passages may be connected to the adult and not to the larval phase.