Taenia crassiceps: Fate of cysticerci following ingestion by the mouse

Cysticerci of Taenia crassiceps were administered to mice by gavage to determine whether enteral or parenteral infections would establish consistently. Some worms survived in the small intestine up to 16 days, whereas others penetrated through the gut wall into the peritoneal cavity within 24 hr. Similar proportions of different doses of worms reached the peritoneal cavity regardless of the size of the inoculum and sex or strain of mice used. In addiiton, it was shown that mice may acquire an intraperitoneal infection with T. crassiceps by eating the carcass of an infected mouse.