A taxonomic study of Strongyloides Grassi, 1879 (Nematoda) with special reference to Strongyloides fuelleborni von linstow, 1905 in man in Papua New Guinea and the description of a new subspecies

The taxonomic position of a Strongyloides species parasitic in man in Papua New Guinea (PNG) that apparently resembled S. fuelleborni (a parasite of man and other primates in tropical Africa) has not been resolved since its discovery in 1973. The results of a morphological (by scanning electron microscopy) and morphometric study were considered together with the results of a separate isoenzyme electrophoretic study of the same material. The nature of the peri-vulval cuticle of the parasitic female and the position of the phasmidial pore of the free-living male were found to be of particular use in addressing this taxonomic problem. We concluded that the Strongyloides in Africa and PNG are subspecies of S. fuelleborni. We propose the name S. fuelleborni kellyi n. subsp. for the Strongyloides found in man in PNG.