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Flatworms, Segmented and Round Worms

Flatworms are a phylum of soft-bodied parasitic or free-living worms that are bilaterally symmetrical and triploblastic, and include four main classes: turbellarians, which are mostly free-living; monogeneans and trematodes, which are endoparasites; and cestodes, or tapeworms, which are also endoparasites living primarily in the intestines of vertebrates. They have complex organ systems but lack true tissues, and many species have complex life cycles involving multiple hosts.

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75 views45 pages

Flatworms, Segmented and Round Worms

Flatworms are a phylum of soft-bodied parasitic or free-living worms that are bilaterally symmetrical and triploblastic, and include four main classes: turbellarians, which are mostly free-living; monogeneans and trematodes, which are endoparasites; and cestodes, or tapeworms, which are also endoparasites living primarily in the intestines of vertebrates. They have complex organ systems but lack true tissues, and many species have complex life cycles involving multiple hosts.

Uploaded by

mathew mawien deng
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Phylum Platyhelminthes

4 principal types of flatworms


divided into 4 taxonomic Groups
Class Turbellaria

>3,000 free-living spp


some commensal
a few parasitic forms
Aquatic, few on land
Body architecture adapted
to a free-living lifestyle
Class Monogenea

~ 400 spp
mostly ectoparasites of P
fish, amphibians.
Feed on blood, mucus..
haptors
Anterior and posterior A
ends for clinging, but life
cycle remains simple, with
a single free living larval
stage
Class Trematoda: flukes

> 6000 spp of endoparasites (liver, lungs, blood, muscles)


Body and life cycle adapted to parasitic existence.

Ventral sucker
Oral sucker
Class Cestoda: tapeworms
> 3500 spp of endoparsites, almost all intestinal parasites
with highly specialized body and life cycle.

scolex

9 ft tapeworm from human host


Largest in sperm whale was over 30 meters long
There is currently a debate between scientists about the position of
comb jellies and sponges in the tree of animal life. What is the basis
for this debate, and why is it important to our understanding of the
evolution of several important animal organ systems?
Characteristics of the Phylum
Bilateral symmetry
Triploblastic
Characteristics of the Phylum
Bilaterally symmetry
Triploblastic
Unsegmented
Acoelomate
Characteristics of the Phylum
Bilaterally symmetry
Triploblastic
Unsegmented
Acoelomate
Organ Systems

Digestive System
Characteristics of the Phylum
Bilaterally symmetrical
Triploblastic
Unsegmented
Acoelomate
Organ Systems

Excretory System
W/ Ultrafiltration and selective absorption
Characteristics of the Phylum
Bilaterally symmetrical
Triploblastic
Unsegmented
Acoelomate
Organ Systems
Complex reprod. System
Regenerative capacities
Most Widely Accepted Phylogeny of the Major
Flatworm Classes
Cestoda
(endoparasitic)

Monogenea
(ectoparasitic)

Trematoda
(endoparasitic)

Turbellaria
-- Parasitic groups considered to be monophyletic and
constitute a grouping known as the Neodermata
Synapomorphies: new skin, obligate parasitism,
protonephridia from two cells
No synapomorphies for the phylum; thought to be
polyphyletic?
Class Cestoda: primarily the tapeworms
• Body in segments called proglottids -formed behind the
small head and continue to grow until released
• Mouth, digestive system lacking
• Scolex attachment structure
• Tegument highly folded with microvillar extensions
• Hermaphrodites

Intestinal
Parasites,
commonly on
vertebrates
•Relatively simple
•Passive dispersal
•Reproduction is
primarily sexual
Cystecercoids (especially from the pork tapeworm Taenia
solium) can accidentally end up in other parts of a body,
especially in accidental hosts such as humans when they
ingest eggs
Class Trematoda:
all endoparasites in blood, liver, gut
distinguished by presence of ventral sucker
(acetabulum), mouth and highly branched G-V Cavity

Usually 2 intermediate hosts, at least one being a


mollusc; the final host is a vertebrate
Class Ex.
Trematoda: Chinese
Liver
Common in China, Korea Fluke
Japan, where practice
of eating uncooked
fish is common

Adults live in the liver


and bile passages

Clonorchis sinensis
Class Trematoda:
Schistosoma mansoni

A snail
is usually
the
intermediate
Host
Class Trematoda:
Eggs pass through blood vessel
Schistosome life cycles into gut, and out….
are unusual Or they lodge in nervous tissue,
in several ways muscles, other organs, causing
excrutiating pain &tissue damage.
-- One intermediate host

-- Have Separate Sexes!

-- Adults live within blood


vessels, feed on blood

Schistosome Egg and spine


Class Trematoda:

Schistosome life
cycles are unusual
in several ways

Separate sexes: dioecious

Picture of the
Happy couple
Of 200 million infected approximately 120 million show symptoms. The
mortality rate is about 2.5% but more frequent in children (5 million deaths,
200K in Sub-Saharan Africa alone)
3 species mainly
invade humans

S. japonicum

S. haematobium
S. mansoni
General Pathology

S. mansoni, S japonicum
• Acute schistosomiasis: fever, nausea, cough etc., and
granuloma formation after female begins to lay eggs

• Chronic Schistosomiasis: could be years later


intestinal schistosomiasis: granulomatous inflamation
around eggs; colonic polyps, especially in Egypt.
hepatosplenic schistosomiasis: inflammation around
eggs trapped in liver, leading to fibrosis,
cirrhosis

S haematobium:
parasites in the bladder and ureter, can lead to
calcification, cancer….”urinary schistosomiasis”
Phylum Nematoda

AKA Unsegmented roundworms.


Nematodes
• Advancements over flatworms:
– Has a two-hole digestive tract.
• Not as advanced as “higher” worms, such as
earthworms because:
– They lack body segmentation.
Nematodes, cont’d
• Unsegmented roundworms are classified into
about 16,000 species, but the actual number of
nematode species could be as high as 500,000.
• Nematode facts:
– Colorless
– Range in length from microscopic to several meters
long.
– May be free-living or parasitic.
Nematode Habitat
• Nematodes live in:
– Parasitic nematodes live within a host
– Free-living nematodes live in marine,
freshwater, or damp soil environments.
The Nematode lifestyles
• Nematodes generally live one of two types
of lifestyles: free-living or parastic.
Free-living Lifestyle

• Eating habits:
– Herbivores – eat plants
– Carnivores – eat animals
– Omnivores – eat both plants & animals
– Saprophagous -Eat dead organic matter (from
animals only), Yummy
– The free-living nematodes are important
because they add organic matter to the soil and
putting holes in the soil to better allow water
movement through the soil.
Parasitic Lifestyle
• Parasitic – feed off of a host.
– These worms feed of the blood or tissue fluids
of their hosts.
– four types of parastic nematodes: filarial
worms, hookworms, trichina worms, and
ascaris worms.
• Interesting tidbits:
– The filarial worms cause the disease
elephantitis, pictured to the left.
– Trichina worms cause trichinosis – the
horrid disease contracted from eating
undercooked pig products.
Nematode Body Plan
• Nematodes have three cell layers:
– Ectoderm – outer tissue layer (epidermis)
– Mesoderm – middle tissue layer (muscle)
– Endoderm – innermost tissue layer (body cavity)

• They are known as psuedocoelomates because they


have an internal cavity that is not lined with
peritoneum – therefore it is not a “true” coelom.

• They are bilaterally symmetrical – as is every


organism we study from here on out.
Nematode Epidermis
• The outside of the nematode is made up of a
tough, flexible, noncellular layer known as
the cuticle.
• The cuticle is secreted by epidermal cells.
• It functions to:
– Resist penetration – in free-living.
– Resist enzymatic digestion – in parasitic.
– Maintains internal hydrostatic pressure.
• The cuticle usually molts 4 times during
maturation.
Reproductive System
• Most nematodes are:
– Dioecious: two different types of reproductive
cells; ex. sperm & egg.
– Dimorphic: two different sexes; ex. male and
female.
• they reproduce sexually.
• The males are slightly smaller than the
females.
Brief Parasitic Nematode Info.
• Pinworms
– Most common roundworm in the U.S.
– Adults reside in the large intestine.
– Enter humans by being eaten.
• Hookworms
– Found in the southern U.S.
– Adults live in the small intestine of humans.
– Enter host through the skin, usually between the toes. That
makes you want to walk around barefoot, doesn’t it?
• Trichina
– Live in humans & other omnivores (like piggys)
– Adults live in the small intestine of it’s host; larvae encyst in the
stomach and skeletal tissue Enter host by being eaten.

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