The effects of various maintenance conditions on the survival of hymenolepidid cysticercoids

Abstract

Cysticercoids of Hymenolepis microstoma, Hymenolepis nana, and Hymenolepis diminuta were examined for their ability to excyst in vitro after being stored in balanced salt solution, distilled water, or the bodies of dead hosts (Tribolium confusum). The number capable of excysting decreased as the duration of the storage period was increased but the rate of decrease varied with the storage medium and was invariably slower when the parasites were stored at 4 °C than when they were kept at 22 °C. The combination of storage medium and temperature that produced the slowest rate of decrease in the ability of the parasites to excyst varied according to species.