tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13027852455149687452024-03-06T19:34:14.091-08:00ParasitophiliaA Blog About ParasitismJJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.comBlogger67125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-65465157572931132682017-02-12T09:25:00.000-08:002017-02-12T09:25:03.998-08:00Guts & Glory: A Parasite Story--A Parasitology Exhibit Coming to Lincoln, Nebraska, in April!Greetings Fellow Parasitophiles!<br />
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I wanted to share with you, in case you hadn't already heard, that it has just been announced that there will be a new temporary exhibit that focuses on parasitism opening this April. The exhibit is called <i>Guts & Glory: A Parasite Story</i>. It opens on Saturday, April 22nd, 2017.<br />
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The exhibit explores the complex relationships that exists between hosts and parasites. It also traces the history of the field of parasitology and is sure to be phenomenal. Here is the Facebook page if you want to keep up to date about the exhibit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/1650482761919405/?active_tab=about" target="_blank">Guts & Glory: A Parasite Story</a><br />
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Further details about how long the exhibit will run are to be coming soon, so stay tuned!<br />
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Also, be sure to check out the H.W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology's website <a href="http://hwml.unl.edu/" target="_blank">here</a> if you haven't already.<br />
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I hope that those of you in Lincoln, Nebraska, will take the time to check this out and that those of you from out of town will consider making a road trip this way in April!JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-38871507508351314622017-01-12T19:19:00.001-08:002017-01-12T19:24:43.347-08:00Cochliomyia hominivorax: Getting Screwed by ScrewwormsGreetings at long last, fellow Parasitophiles! As you may have noticed, I haven't been able to post lately. I was busy finishing up my degree, graduating, and applying for more jobs than I can count on both hands. Time flies while you're having fun!<br />
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Speaking of flies...today, I wanted to talk with you about one that is particularly important given its current status. Have you ever heard of <i>Cochliomyia hominivorax</i>? Better known as the New World primary screwworm, this little beastie is capable of causing huge problems. This week, the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed a case of canine myiasis (a stray dog infested with flies) caused by <i>C. hominivorax</i> near Homestead, Florida.<br />
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This is really, really, REALLY bad news.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://phil.cdc.gov/PHIL_Images/13391/13391_lores.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Image result for cochliomyia hominivorax usda florida" border="0" src="http://phil.cdc.gov/PHIL_Images/13391/13391_lores.jpg" height="236" width="320" /></a>Why? You ask. Because we aren't talking about a fly that comes to feces or dead things to feast and lay its eggs. We are talking about a fly that prefers instead to dine on living host tissues that provide a nice, warm, plentiful food resource for its young'uns. Additionally, we are not talking about a fly that infests a few smaller mammals and lays an egg or a little clutch of eggs before flying off. No. Not with <i>C. hominivorax</i>. This fly has a wide range of documented hosts, including small mammals, deer, livestock, companion animals like dogs, and even humans. These unlucky hosts are not subject to small numbers of maggots when eggs hatch...an individual female <i>C. hominivorax</i> can lay up to 500 eggs at a time and during her lifetime, which lasts about 20 days from the time that she hatches from an egg, she may lay as many as 3,000 eggs! If you Google images of this organism, you are sure to find many disturbing pictures of cattle, dogs, humans, and other animals who suffered from these maggots. Particularly disturbing for me is finding photos of oral myiasis...that is, cases where maggots burrowed into the mouths of people. If you liked your lunch today and would rather not meet with it again, I'd advise you not to look that one up! For this post, I avoided such photos this time.<br />
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In short: These flies are baby-making machines with wings that need living, warm-blooded hosts to reproduce. This translates to some pretty serious issues for us, but before we go into the impacts that these creatures can have and have had in the past, let us look a little more closely at their biology.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Cochliomyia_hominivorax_(Coquerel,_1858).jpg/220px-Cochliomyia_hominivorax_(Coquerel,_1858).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image result" border="0" height="137" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Cochliomyia_hominivorax_(Coquerel,_1858).jpg/220px-Cochliomyia_hominivorax_(Coquerel,_1858).jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Cochliomyia hominivorax</i> adult.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Taxonomy</b><br />
These flies, like all flies, are insects belonging in the order Diptera. They are placed within the family Calliphoridae with blow flies, like the shiny, metallic blue and greens that you often find buzzing around dead things. Five species are found within the genus <i>Cochliomyia, </i>including <i>C. hominivorax</i>. The epithet derives from words that loosely translate to "inclined to devour man".<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Life Cycle</b><br />
These flies live about 20 days when the weather is warm and may live a little bit longer in cooler climates. Adult females mate once in their lives before depositing between 250 and 500 eggs on the edges of open wounds or mucous membranes found on unlucky hosts. Three days to a week later, these eggs hatch and form maggot masses that burrow into the flesh of the host where the larvae feed on bodily fluids and living tissues. This causes wounds to enlarge as the screwworms feed, which in turn provides more places for other female flies to deposit their eggs. Left untreated, this infestation can be fatal to the host, which may be your pet cat, dog, or bird, your livestock animals (including cattle, pigs, goats, and sheep), things you hunt like deer or rabbits, or, in rare cases, even that uncle that you feel bad for laughing at when you realize how serious myiasis can be. (Don't worry, I'm sure Uncle Jack will seek medical treatment before it would kill him no matter how macho he tries to appear.)<br />
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After several days devouring Fluffy or Uncle Jack, the maggots will drop off of their host and burrow into the soil to pupate. This means that they form a hard shell known as a "pupa" and undergo a complex process before bursting out as adult flies. Do you remember that process from your basic biology courses? That's right! Metamorphosis...just like other insects, like butterflies, undergo to transition from little worms to winged beauties....except in this case beauty is relative (unless you are a male <i>C. hominivorax</i>). Anyway, good job reader!<br />
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After adult flies emerge from their pupae, they quickly mate and begin looking for a host with an owie for egg-layin'. These flies are about twice as big as your common housefly and feature three black stripes on their backs along with unmistakably orange eyes. They can travel several miles as adults, but are dispersed much further by their hosts as eggs and larvae.<br />
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<a href="https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/speccoll/files/fullsize/1363ca014cfe28d1497c36ccf96773ae.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em;"><img alt="Image result for cochliomyia hominivorax usda florida" border="0" height="209" src="https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/speccoll/files/fullsize/1363ca014cfe28d1497c36ccf96773ae.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="http://i.newstalkflorida.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Screwworm-Maggots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Image result for cochliomyia hominivorax usda florida" border="0" src="http://i.newstalkflorida.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Screwworm-Maggots.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b>Getting Screwed Since the 1920s</b><br />
We have records going back to the 1920s of government-sponsored public education effort aimed at helping people to identify screwworms. A decade later, we were reporting cases of primary screwworms all across the south in the states and the USDA upped their extension efforts to teach people how to deal with them. In 1933, Emory C. Cushing within the USDA's Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine along with Walter S. Patton from the University of Liverpool in England published a paper describing the New World screwworm as a distinct species from the common blowfly, which many had mistaken as the same fly up until that point. Three years later, Cushing published a follow-up paper with E.W. Laake and H.E. Parish outlining the morphological and biological differences between the primary and secondary screwworms (<i>C. macellaria</i>). These were hugely important papers in the long and drawn-out battle between North America and <i>C. hominivorax</i>.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/speccoll/files/fullsize/d01b1bc36292b3765722def24bcabc8e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Photograph of Dr. Edward F. Knipling (seated) and Dr. Raymond C. Bushland<br /><br />
" border="0" height="320" src="https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/speccoll/files/fullsize/d01b1bc36292b3765722def24bcabc8e.jpg" width="254" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dr. Edward F. Knipling (seated) <br />
and Dr. Raymond C. Bushland.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The 1940s saw the rise of the Third Reich and the slowing of screwworm research in the U.S. Many of the prominent screwworm scientists of the day were diverted to working with other organisms that troops would be dealing with in other countries during the second World War. Though domestic screwworm studies slowed, they didn't halt completely. Surveys continued with a disturbing report emerging in 1949 regarding severe infestations occurring in South Dakota on account of infected cattle being shipped into the state. This report by Raymond C. Bushland, the man who developed mass-rearing methods for screwworms by the late 1930s, highlighted the economic impacts of this fly and raised ranchers' concerns about the severity of these flies and how quickly they could be spread.<br />
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Edward F. Knipling built on Bushland's work by developing Sterile Insect Technique (SIT). This technique involves mass-rearing flies and then sterilizing them prior to release. Once released, the sterile flies mate with females, who typically only mate once in their lifetime, leaving them unable to reproduce. By the mid-1950s, several labs were experimenting and field testing SIT.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fao.org/docrep/U4220T/u4220T05.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image result for cochliomyia hominivorax usda florida" border="0" src="http://www.fao.org/docrep/U4220T/u4220T05.gif" height="320" width="308" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Primary screwworm eradication efforts <br />
pushed the flies south little-by-little.</td></tr>
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Glossing over a lot of really great stories about studies and struggles, we eventually found success with the implementation of large-scale SIT programs. Florida's eradication efforts led scientists to claim that the state, along with other parts of the Southeast, were screwworm-free by 1959. Seven years, billions of dollars, and a major partnership with Mexico later, the U.S. in whole was declared screwworm free. However, outbreaks continued through the 1970s and <br />the early 1980s. Since 1984, only isolated, imported cases have popped up, but otherwise North America has been pretty much screwworm-free. The 1990s saw continued efforts to push naturally-occurring screwworm populations south. Eventually, we got them eradicated as far south as Panama. You can read more details about this fascinating story <a href="https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/speccoll/exhibits/show/stop-screwworms--selections-fr/introduction" target="_blank">here</a> if you are interested.<br />
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<b>Current Concerns</b><br />
Which brings us up to current events. Over the last few months, we have seen new reports about cases of primary screwworm that have popped up along the Florida keys. Deer have been found to harbor these parasites, which were spreading quickly. With concern that the flies would make the jump to the mainland, eradication strategies were rapidly deployed on the islands. My entomologist friends and I have been tracking these stories in the news hoping to hear that the mainland was safe, but this week our fears were confirmed with the announcement of a stray dog having been found harboring <i>C. hominivorax</i>. The case spurred federal and state agencies to action and they are currently surveying the area to assess the extent of active screwworms in Florida.<br />
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For those worried, the stray dog was treated and is doing fine now that he isn't being eaten alive.<br />
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Aside from the obvious health concerns for people, wildlife, pets, and livestock, these flies could have catastrophic effects economically. Estimates from the USDA have reported that screwworm eradication has saved the U.S. livestock industry over $900 million dollars per year. Remember that this estimate doesn't include costs to pet-owners, breeders, or wildlife conservation efforts.<br />
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Here's to hoping that we can control whatever is already here and prevent future outbreaks, especially as if we see a long, warm spring/summer that would lead to a boom in any existing screwworm populations.<br />
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><br />
The battle between us and the North American screwworm has been long and hard-fought. Countless man hours and dollars have gone into ensuring our victory over these winged beasties, and yet still they pop up from time to time because one person or another brought in an infected cow or doggy without considering the ramifications (or simply out of ignorance). This reinforces the importance of public outreach and extension efforts. Funding programs to continue educating the public about primary screwworms is both essential and inexpensive relative to the costs of dealing with established screwworm populations on a larger scale as was necessary in the past. Similarly, we need to be supportive of research in the control and prevention of parasitic insects.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Image for the first content page of the item, linking to the full file." height="220" src="https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/speccoll/files/fullsize/0f1fe5b3558511ef3a57d5658127ac17.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bumper sticker from 1977.</td></tr>
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JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-78661624383603248382016-03-10T18:30:00.000-08:002016-03-10T18:40:22.085-08:00Break It Down!: Taphonomic Factors Affecting Parasite PreservationGreetings Fellow Parasitophiles!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJnNE25Gk2ETeBoqbQ1qCQwB_BoTaCG6DDkCEqxHSyVdaxeBMUNzVa91wieQiiRfbzuwtDgJsZIzoZwZScT49rZSJsavq4Jxh4sZ8SX4Yg_Drrmn9iHOXwb7vL2FOrtVe8QwU1h835yNs/s1600/22.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJnNE25Gk2ETeBoqbQ1qCQwB_BoTaCG6DDkCEqxHSyVdaxeBMUNzVa91wieQiiRfbzuwtDgJsZIzoZwZScT49rZSJsavq4Jxh4sZ8SX4Yg_Drrmn9iHOXwb7vL2FOrtVe8QwU1h835yNs/s200/22.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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Today, is an exciting day for me...it's the day that I sent my dissertation manuscript off to my supervisory committee for approval before I defend my dissertation here in a few weeks! (Things are getting very, very real!) In celebration of this occasion, I decided to allow myself to...do more writing! (I really am a bit of a nerd sometimes...well, most of the time...and more than a bit...) In trying to decide what to share with all of you, I realized that I had not yet posted about my most recent paper. So, here it is! My first paper of 2016 and the story behind it!<br />
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I remember sitting at coffee one Friday, as I do with my advisor for our weekly lab meetings, and discussing some of the various factors that affect the preservation of parasite eggs in archaeological materials. We talked about both the abiotic (non-living) factors, like soil pH and climate, and some of the biotic (living) factors, like the actions of decomposer species. My advisor turned to me and said something along the lines of, "you should write a paper on that sometime".<br />
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I found the idea intriguing and thought about it a lot over the next few months. I started working on a manuscript without a clear idea of where I would go with the paper. I thought about how to categorize the major contributing factors that affect the preservation of parasite eggs in both positive and negative ways. I eventually came up with five broad categories of taphonomic (taphonomy is the study of decomposition and preservation) factors that affect parasite eggs existing in archaeological contexts. Those five broad categories were as follows:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVxjUMkB6R3pIZLf3ZZNAV4nAsbvKavQYvf7jlPNDRGEhMt8WwfJ29sMWPLLfAJuGz_bY_O3hA3IMimubrpNr51l3pf4iEjsrYVPMMmLJgTW4qUuMbzhkQo1ZqdJUvw8U2pFPpOYlVRSM/s1600/tfs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVxjUMkB6R3pIZLf3ZZNAV4nAsbvKavQYvf7jlPNDRGEhMt8WwfJ29sMWPLLfAJuGz_bY_O3hA3IMimubrpNr51l3pf4iEjsrYVPMMmLJgTW4qUuMbzhkQo1ZqdJUvw8U2pFPpOYlVRSM/s400/tfs.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[From Morrow et al., 2016]</td></tr>
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1) Abiotic Factors--Those non-living things that influence preservation, such as temperature, soil conditions, and the chemical environment in which archaeological materials are found.<br />
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2) Contextual Factors--Those reflecting the archaeological context from which we collect parasite data. (i.e. parasite eggs in mummies preserve differently than those in coprolites or latrines)<br />
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3) Anthropogenic Factors--Those arising from the interactions humans have with the deposition, manipulations, excavation, transportation, and analyses of archaeological materials.<br />
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4) Organismal Factors--Those inherent in the biology of the organisms you are studying, such as the features of an egg that make them more susceptible to degradation or the natural history of a parasite that makes it more likely to be recovered from human feces.<br />
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5) Ecological Factors--Those involving the interactions of parasite evidence with other organisms, like decomposers, predators that my ingest parasite eggs, or vectors than can transport the eggs from one fecal deposit to another.<br />
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Each of these broad categories could be further subdivided into other categories and can affect the preservation of parasites in both positive and in negative ways. To provide examples of how these factors affect parasite egg preservation, we presented three case studies and discussed these five categories of taphonomic agents for each case.<br />
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I won't go into case-by-case detail (you are more than welcome to read the paper if you are interested in that bit), but I will tell you a bit about the three cases. These sites were each near and dear to my heart as they were the first three things that I published about. (One in a special historical journal that hasn't come out yet and two peer-reviewed articles that I talked about in previous posts <a href="http://parasitophilia.blogspot.com/2014/09/officially-author-part-ii-announcing-my.html" target="_blank">here </a>and <a href="http://parasitophilia.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-nivelles-story-my-second-peer.html" target="_blank">here</a>.)<br />
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Case 1: The recovery of intestinal parasites from historic mummies in Vilnius, Lithuania. In the first paper about these parasites, we highlighted a taphonomic issue that only arises with the analysis of mummies.<br />
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Case 2: The recovery of intestinal parasites from coprolites recovered from medieval skeletonized burials in Nivelles, Belgium. In the original publication of this material, we discussed an instance of extreme parasitism revealed by the analysis of coprolites from one one of the burials.<br />
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Case 3: The lack of parasites recovered during the analysis of embalming jar contents from crypts containing members of the famed Medici family of Florence, Italy. The potential reasoning for the lack of parasite evidence was discussed at great length in the original paper (which is still "in press" after several years). These reasons ranged from taphonomic to cultural in nature and included a discussion of how Medici affluence likely played a role in reducing the risk of parasite infections and in providing the most effective treatments of the time to control for infections had they occurred.<br />
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Each of these studies demonstrated a range of taphonomic considerations for the interpretation of archaeoparasitological data. This paper concludes with a discussion of how important it is for researchers to consider taphonomic factors when they discuss their findings. It urges future studies to discuss the five broad categories of taphonomic factors that may have positively or negatively affected the preservation of their parasite eggs.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrpdEJtU0s19HzrgmyUFdrw8fjETlABCB9k0tbxE142xnsKhciNC4t7SW7gt6tQ64-MyH_khPz6Wj4XSHOgsUins4ubVedi6PEhmIeNqmzb4bGWpHuKVMoNZKi9RaAOz_UTF85L1QH2FE/s1600/happy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrpdEJtU0s19HzrgmyUFdrw8fjETlABCB9k0tbxE142xnsKhciNC4t7SW7gt6tQ64-MyH_khPz6Wj4XSHOgsUins4ubVedi6PEhmIeNqmzb4bGWpHuKVMoNZKi9RaAOz_UTF85L1QH2FE/s200/happy.jpg" width="173" /></a><br />
I have to say that this is probably my favorite paper to have ever published. I love how it turned out. I was happy to have run with a simple suggestion (which my advisor may or may not have expected me to actually follow through with so quickly) and to have created an article that is actually really important for the advancement of the field. I got to work with an undergraduate as a mentor and I got to publish with an international colleague. I feel that this experience has helped me to grow in many ways professionally and I am proud to have such an elegant paper to show for it.<br />
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><br />
When your advisor gives one of those small comments like, "you should do...." don't brush it off and put it on your list of things to do after you graduate. Take a little time to assess whether or not you could actually gain a lot from working on something small...you might end up with something that is much bigger than you had originally thought it would be! Also, don't let your dissertation be the only thing that you leave with when you graduate. You are much more marketable if you can show that you have the ability to do other things!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Title Shot!</td></tr>
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<br />JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-11336618446234390682016-02-27T22:37:00.002-08:002016-03-02T07:59:55.620-08:00Sharing Poop and ParasitesI've missed writing to you guys...dissertation and general life has been a little OP lately. (OP = "over powered"...it's a slang term used often in the gaming world and I've been married to a gamer for too long to not use it.) I won't waste time saying that this is me starting up regular posts again, the dissertation is still not finished (though I'm getting close!) and I have a pretty busy few months ahead of me. I'm hoping to start back up this summer, after I (FINALLY) graduate, but I'm not making any promises just yet.<br />
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Today, I'm writing to you for a different reason. I recently competed in an Elevator Speech Competition hosted by my school. I had a bit of a rough time with delivery, but in the end it wasn't all bad. For this competition, I was given 1 slide (with no moving animations) and three minutes to tell a general audience about my research. For those interested, I've included the slide and a transcript of my speech below. Happy reading!<br />
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<b><u><i><span style="font-size: large;">My Elevator Speech</span></i></u></b></div>
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Poop and parasites; two things that I love despite what other people think. Though not always appropriate dinner conversation, poop provides a wealth of data regarding diet and disease. This is as true for what many of you made earlier today as it was for humans thousands of years ago.<br />
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My dissertation focuses on retrieving data from 1,300-year-old paleo-poops known as “coprolites”, like the one in the middle of this slide. By analyzing coprolites, we are able to reconstruct diets and patterns of parasite infections that occurred in pre-history. This allows us to better understand the origins of human-parasite associations that still affect people in the modern world.<br />
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The coprolites that I work with come from a cave in Mexico known as “La Cueva de los Muertos Chiquitos”. This cave held hundreds of coprolites that were sealed beneath two adobe floors, making for some of the best-preserved parasite evidence in the world…now that’s the kind of high-quality crap that we archaeoparasitologists dream about!<br />
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The diversity of parasites recovered from this site is amazing. Starting at 12 o’clock, we see a <i>Physaloptera </i>egg, which is associated with dogs. Moving clockwise we see a human whipworm egg, then at 4 o’clock we see <i>Toxascaris</i>, another dog parasite that infects humans from time to time. At 6 o’clock are the results of a molecular test used to look for parasites that don’t leave behind eggs. Ignoring the control wells on the top left, every place that you see yellow represents a positive sample for a diarrhea-inducing parasite called <i>Cryptosporidium parvum</i>. Moving along, the egg you see at about 7 o’clock belongs to a tapeworm and the green egg is that of a human pinworm. Finally, the one up there at about 10 o’clock is a fluke egg. Each of these parasites has a distinct life cycle involving different hosts and modes of transmission.<br />
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By recovering parasite data, we are able to infer patterns of human behavior, for example, the dog parasites I mentioned tell us that the people using this cave had close associations with dogs and the molecular test at 6 o’clock tells us that lots of people had diarrhea. The pinworm eggs were so prevalent among the coprolites that we know the vast majority of people at this site were infected.<br />
At night, the female pinworm crawls out of the anus to lay her itchy little eggs on the perianal folds, so you know that as soon as the sun set on La Cueva de los Muertos Chiquitos, everyone was either scratching or dealing with diarrhea. It doesn’t sound like much of a party for them, but it does provide us with lots of information 1,300 years later!<br />
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As we continue collecting parasite data from this site, we will gain a picture of the daily lives of people who left no written record, only ancient nuggets of information reflecting what they ate and what was eating them.JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-53179901599631381832015-07-03T10:26:00.003-07:002015-07-03T10:26:38.453-07:00Fast Times at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of ParasitologistsGreetings fellow parasitophiliacs! First of all, let me begin how I've begun far to many of my most recent posts by apologizing for my lack of writing lately. As a PhD candidate, I could come up with a million excuses...namely that I'm focusing heavily on my dissertation at the moment...but suffice it to say that I've had good intentions without the available time it takes to write something that you *hopefully* will enjoy reading.<br />
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I'll try to keep today's post short and sweet without getting too sentimental. Last weekend I attended my first American Society of Parasitologists meeting. I've been a member of this society for several years, but this was the first time I was able to go to one of the annual meetings.<br />
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This meeting was held over the course of four days in Omaha, Nebraska. The meeting consisted of a wonderful mix of student and faculty presentations covering a wide range of parasitological topics. There were a few symposia on topics that included undergraduate education and community outreach with regard to parasitology. These symposia featured several excellent talks by prominent members of the society.<br />
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For me, the most fun part of the meeting was the ability to catch up with other parasitologists and to have the chance to meet some of the "big names" for the first time. Like any young professional, I always leave wondering if I made the good impression that I hoped to make or if I said something stupid without realizing it. However, everyone that I met was welcoming and kind, so if I did say something stupid, they were nice enough not to make me <i>feel </i>dumb. It's pretty amazing to be a part of a society that is full of so many people who make you feel like you belong even if they've just met you.<br />
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The president of the society described our gathering as being similar to a "family reunion". It certainly felt that way to me, even being a relative new-comer with regard to attending the national meetings. I got to see many familiar faces from the Southwestern Association of Parasitologists (SWAP) and Rocky Mountain Conference of Parasitologists (RMCP) meetings that I've been attending since Dr. Duszynski took me to my first SWAP meeting while I was working on my master's. It's always great catching up and seeing what sorts of things people are working on.<br />
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I was also fortunate to meet a number of new people, including fellow students and prominent parasitologists conducting research in all kinds of neat areas. I met the now past-president of the society, Dr. David Lindsay, and got to talk to him about <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> and other fun coccidia that he has spent his career studying. He introduced me to his student, Richard, who is studying <i>Sarcocystis</i>. He also offered me some of his spit to help with my dissertation...I've never been so excited to have received such an offer! (He is seropositive for <i>T. gondii</i>, so I could really use his spit to help with some of my experimental work.)<br />
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I briefly met our new president, Dr. Mark Siddall. Dr. Siddall studies leeches and works at the American Museum of Natural History. We didn't talk long, but we did get to talk a bit about outreach for the society. I can't commit to much, but it would be good to give back to the society in some way. I plan to send him an email later to touch base about how I can help. (I'm thinking I'll pitch the idea of getting ASP on Imgur, which would be pretty cool!) He also talked to me a bit about my dissertation and offered to put me in touch with some ancient DNA people if I have time to add that component into my dissertation work. Additionally, I got to meet one of his students briefly. The student was doing this really great work with microCT scanning of leeches. The animations in his presentation were excellent.<br />
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I was able to meet with several people who took the time to speak with me about my dissertation work. First, I met Dr. Charles Faulkner. I have read several of Dr. Faulkner's papers, so it was very exciting to meet him in person. We had a couple of opportunities to chat about the molecular work that I will be embarking upon this August and he was kind enough to give me his thoughts on some of the parasite eggs that I've been finding in my samples. What a great guy!<br />
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I also met with Dr. Agustin Jimenez. I've known Agustin for several years and I was happy that he had time to chat with me at ASP. He sat with me for a good while giving his thoughts on some of my photos of parasite eggs from my material and he had lots of insights to share since he had published on material from the same site. He even sent me some supplementary material from his work on the site that I've been looking through since I got back to the station for the summer.<br />
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I got to talk with lots of other people, but this post is already starting to look a bit long, so I'll cut it short for now. Overall, this was a great meeting! I enjoyed the food, fun, and familiar faces that filled the venue and it was wonderful to meet so many fellow parasitophiliacs in one place. I look forward to next year's meeting and to doing a little bit of service for such an open and supportive society run by awesome people. :)<br />
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><br />
If you love what you do, you should seek out societies of like-minded people. Attending these meetings is a great way to enhance your knowledge base of the discipline and to expand your network of colleagues (and friends if you are lucky). These gatherings open the door for collaborative efforts and can be hugely beneficial for troubleshooting your own research. Plus, a hotel full of parasitologists is a pretty fun place to be! Where else can you talk about parasites while eating and not have one person make a comment about how it's not appropriate dinner conversation? (The struggle is real!)JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-44902935113342598092015-02-10T21:51:00.001-08:002015-02-10T21:51:38.691-08:00Spittin' ELISAs: Using Saliva to Detect Parasitic InfectionsOver the weekend I attended a League of Legends tournament with my wonderful husband. Despite anticipating losing a day's worth of work, I wound up hanging out with another fellow parasitophile and then I got an e-mail from my advisor with a paper that I hadn't read yet. So, there I was, reading about detecting <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> via ELISA from salivary samples of modern people (well, people from 1995 anyway...). The paper's intro cited one study I was familiar with and FIVE that I wasn't. From that point on, I knew I'd be (eagerly and enthusiastically) reading a lot more over the weekend.<br />
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So this is a post for me for you. This is me reminding myself of what I learned and sharing it with you, which I suppose has been the goal of this blog all along. I guess it just seems more overt at the moment.<br />
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Before we jump too far ahead, let's start by talking about what ELISAs are. ELISA stands for "enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay". It's a fancy phrase, but don't let it scare you too much; the concept is fairly straightforward. Essentially, when you are infected with a parasite, the parasite produces antigens that are specific to whichever parasite is infecting you. In response, your body produces antibodies that are specifically designed to deal with the infection of that parasite. ELISAs are tests that are designed to detect either the parasite antigen or the antibody produced in response to said antigen.<br />
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Each ELISA kit is parasite-specific to some degree or another. This is really dependent on the parasite. Some kits can detect antigens/antibodies produced by/in response to a particular species, while others can only detect parasites at the genus level, so you may not know exactly which parasite you have. In the medical world, this is sort of "good enough for government work" as you can often treat infections with species belonging to the same genus in the same manner effectively. (If you have a parasite that is susceptible to a the same treatment protocols as a different parasite, it doesn't really matter what you are treating for as long as the treatment works.) As parasite ELISAs are most often used in medical and veterinary settings for rapid diagnosis, the specificity is less of an issue. However, in the case of parasitological research, we have to be careful when we use ELISAs to assess parasitism. We have to pick the kits carefully and be aware of potential cross-reactivatity.<br />
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Parasite ELISAs typically work with two types of material: blood and feces. (Wooo-hoo!) As you might imagine, intestinal parasites are typically detected from feces while non-intestinal types of parasites are found via blood serum. The problem with serum is that acquiring it is invasive (and for those of us that study archaeoparasitology, not available for use). Interestingly, your body carries antigens and produces antibodies that wind up in places other than serum...say for example, in your saliva. Really brilliant people in the late 1980s and early 1990s figured out that you could detect a number of pathogens via ELISA testing using patient saliva rather than serum. The Chagas' paper I mentioned earlier cited three studies that found viral infections, two that demonstrated parasitic infections, and one that detected bacterial infections. The two parasitic infections were chronic schistosomiasis (Garcia and colleagues, 1995) and acute toxoplasmosis (Hajeer and colleagues, 1994). Plus the paper on Chagas', of course.<br />
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It seems that that literature grows silent on this topic after the 1990s. It doesn't seem that people found evidence that these previous studies were incorrect (as far as I can tell), so I'm wondering if it just fell off of people's radar or if it just became so well-accepted that people stopped writing about it. It's hard to say one way or the other from my limited knowledge of the parasite ELISA literature, but I'm excited to have found something that leads to more. (Before Saturday, only knew about the Hajeer paper, so now I have a little bit more to build off of, which is super exciting for me!)<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">The Moral of the Story</span><br />
The point of all this is to tell those of you who, like me, knew/know very little about molecular work and its application to the field of parasitology. Testing saliva from people and animals is a quick, non-invasive way to do preliminary tests for certain types of parasites. It's amazing how far our technology has advanced and it will be interesting to see how these advancements help us to better understand parasitism in the world around us, past, present, and future. I'm hoping to find more parasite studies looking at the application of ELISA testing that utilizes saliva as the detection source, so this is also a request to keep your eyes and ears open and let me know if you know of work being done in the area. (Thanks in advance to those of you that actually do!)JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-81913114470776941562015-02-01T20:31:00.003-08:002015-02-01T20:33:01.540-08:00Sifting Through the Sediments: Parasite Eggs from Night Soil ContextsWhile the last thing that most people would want to get in the mail is night soil, I'm one of those people who excitedly awaits for jars of this stuff to arrive. (Because one: Such material is super cool and because two: "most people" are boring.) In my last two posts, I discussed how we look for parasites in the context of mummified tissues and desiccated feces. Today, I'm going to introduce you to another great source of literal pay-dirt for archaeoparasitologists.<br />
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<b>Night Soil Sediments from the Past</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nightman's calling card from the 1800s.</td></tr>
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For those who haven't been introduced to the phrase "night soil", I'm referring to dirt that has human fecal components. The term originated from the olden days when people would shovel human waste out of cesspools and outhouses during the night and later usually sell the excrement to farmers as a fertilizer. Many of these people employed as "nightmen" or "night soil men" were not allowed to work during the day and made up a portion of the lowest of low classes in most places. This was early human waste management in Europe, Africa, and Asia long before modern standards of disposal.<br />
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As you've probably already figured out, there were lots of problems with sanitation in the past. Before modern indoor plumbing, people found a variety of ways to store their steaming piles of...stuff...before nightmen could come and haul it away. Some were indoor chambers for relieving oneself. This included things like chamber pots or water closets (the early ancestor to modern flushing toilets). Others were outdoor pit latrines such as the outhouse, the privy, the dunny, the biffy, or the long-drop.<br />
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As excrement, other waste materials, and soil fill these types of features, evidence of parasites is preserved in a stratigraphic way (with the oldest layers at the bottom and the youngest layers at the top). Archaeologist excavate these types of features along with middens (trash heaps), cisterns, and other collections of human waste from sites all over the world. These sediments are collected with provenience information carefully recorded and dates associated with other things recovered from the same layer.<br />
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<b>Analyzing Latrine Sediments</b><br />
Once these sediments make their way to people like me, they are examined using a sequential analysis model (or at least they should be) to gather all of the information that can possibly come from such material. To process this type of material, first we treat sediments with hydrochloric acid to react with any microfossil-binding calcium carbonate that might be present. Next, we use distilled water to screen heavy sediments and separate macrofossils (big pieces of plants, minerals, bones, insect remains, etc.) from microfossils (parasite eggs, starch granules, pollen, etc.) using the swirl technique. The macrofossils are dried and examined via a stereoscopic microscope. The microfossils are examined via light microscopy and exposed to further processing as needed.<br />
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" 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" width="160" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">SEM of <i>Lycopodium</i> spores.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Depending on the nature of the samples, we may need to use dangerous chemicals like hydrofluoric acid (for dissolving silicates) or zinc bromide (for heavy density flotation). We are very careful when using such things as they can be harmful if precautions aren't taken to protect ourselves. For example, we wear eye protection all the time...especially when we use zinc bromide because it attacks the optic nerve if splashed in your eye and can blind you. We also have lots of special safety protocols when we work with hydrofluoric acid as it can stop your heart if enough gets on your skin and you aren't treated quickly. Rule #1: Never do it alone, just in case. I'll be using this acid later this week for some sediments from Iowa. There will be two other people in the lab...one working on mites, and one hanging around in case I have any problems.<br />
<br />
We also treat sediments with <i>Lycopodium </i>spore tablets just like we treat coprolites and mummy intestines. By adding a known amount of these spores as markers, we are able to quantify our microfossils and make sense of their presence in our samples. We use a microfossil concentration formula to determine the number of microfossils per unit (weight or volume) of sediment.<br />
<br />
<b>Taphonomic Issues</b><br />
Like other kinds of archaeological materials, we must always consider the state of preservation for our samples. The addition of chemicals to break down excrement is something to be aware of in samples from certain places and time periods. As I learned from a recent set of historic samples from Missouri, the microfossils found in cisterns are fewer in number and much more degraded than those found in privies from the same time period.<br />
<br />
We also must consider how often the sediments were exposed to abiotic agents of change, like wind and water. A series of wetting and drying episodes can degrade things as hardy as sporopollenin-laden pine tree pollen grains over time, leaving no evidence of anything that was once there. Biotic agents, like coprophagus (poop-eating) fungi, bacteria, and animals, can also affect what we find in latrine sediments.<br />
<br />
<b>From Privies to Parasites</b><br />
Without going into too much detail about the types of microfossils found in latrine sediments, I thought I'd let all of you parasitophiles see some of the groovy parasite eggs that have been found from these contexts.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTJc1kyjtb74BF1OyYKlbFqCAUbQR84pEbal3iYCfRIsQaUMB-y5galt2RJuSKJ1j1fxys-fDBddsGDH0q5-mHSga4GTChXZrqDnH4gzQT6-Syyy_MEJn35F0vvH-L7R8ncVNivTVH0bg/s1600/Tuscon+Cemetary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTJc1kyjtb74BF1OyYKlbFqCAUbQR84pEbal3iYCfRIsQaUMB-y5galt2RJuSKJ1j1fxys-fDBddsGDH0q5-mHSga4GTChXZrqDnH4gzQT6-Syyy_MEJn35F0vvH-L7R8ncVNivTVH0bg/s1600/Tuscon+Cemetary.jpg" height="400" width="230" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parasite eggs recovered <br />
from cemetery sediments.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6HDDwtVpns7f06uLrJt23ZZ02vW4hOzI9YpVKa_HqIT1O_wBsl-G1sVKO3Zf0aIUR9dyfjl_p8dLQrC5P2XkKESF4AVpu5ExX4mGJNiGqLNJsgg2lNgUhQrg-8WcWy2DvGB0yfnixAc0/s1600/15p05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6HDDwtVpns7f06uLrJt23ZZ02vW4hOzI9YpVKa_HqIT1O_wBsl-G1sVKO3Zf0aIUR9dyfjl_p8dLQrC5P2XkKESF4AVpu5ExX4mGJNiGqLNJsgg2lNgUhQrg-8WcWy2DvGB0yfnixAc0/s1600/15p05.jpg" height="400" width="317" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Unfertilized egg of<br />
<i>Ascaris</i> <i>lumbricoides</i></td></tr>
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Molecular techniques have also been used on sediments to search for evidence of parasites that don't leave visible traces of themselves. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) have been applied to samples in order to detect a number of protozoan parasites such as <i>Giardia</i> sp., and <i>Entamoeba histolytica. </i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Example ELISA plate. <br />
Yellow wells = positive samples.</td></tr>
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><i></i><br />
Like mummies and coprolites, sifting through latrine sediments elicits reactions of both disgust and amazement from those following your work. The data that can be gathered from such studies are immense in volume and intensity. I have conducted a number of contract archaeology jobs that involved the analysis of latrine sediments, so I can literally call these types of material "pay-dirt" from both a scientific and from an economic standpoint. It is sad that so few researchers understand the importance and potential of examining latrine sediments, but at the same time this allows those of us who do see the value in these studies to work without a lot of interference. As always, these kinds of studies provide the best means of understanding what past people were eating and what exactly were eating them.<br />
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JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-49242824041223816582015-01-25T15:15:00.000-08:002015-01-25T15:16:10.296-08:00The Copious Little Coprolite: A Tale of Underrated Informants As you may or may not already know, a great deal of my dissertation work focuses on the analysis of desiccated human feces (i.e. "coprolites"). These remains can come from archaeological sites such as caves and trash middens, or from direct human contexts such as mummified intestines or even burials in some special cases (e.g. <a href="http://parasitophilia.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-nivelles-story-my-second-peer.html" target="_blank">Nivelles</a>). Coprolites most often form in arid environments, preserving within them a vast amount of information about their depositors' diets, medicinal plant usage, and pathogens. By analyzing these tiny cornucopias of data, we are able to learn not only what people were eating and what was eating them, but also to use these data to elucidate patterns of human behavior as our ancestors interacted with the world around them. Today, we are going to pay homage to something that doesn't often get the recognition that it deserves...the copious little coprolite.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqucKKRiN-nx1MCl2Odp3eE3sbl5QORl6qyXY6Ol1_la72D1jYDy1T7ZshPV3GtuiIWwtcvPH5aMl6S98yXMzHQ0_byCBfyeZ9zRR4hfytS0kIteUZhpGcvRCLOPhyphenhyphenN4vxV7VKxPtJWF8/s1600/HC-coprolite-1-sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqucKKRiN-nx1MCl2Odp3eE3sbl5QORl6qyXY6Ol1_la72D1jYDy1T7ZshPV3GtuiIWwtcvPH5aMl6S98yXMzHQ0_byCBfyeZ9zRR4hfytS0kIteUZhpGcvRCLOPhyphenhyphenN4vxV7VKxPtJWF8/s1600/HC-coprolite-1-sm.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A coprolite from Hinds Cave, Texas.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>A Brief History of Coprolite Analysis</b><br />
The word "coprolite" began as a descriptor of mineralized dinosaur feces used for the first time by a paleontologist named William Buckland in 1829. By the 1960s, the term had been applied to other fecal forms preserved via desiccation in addition to mineralization and was being used to describe fecal materials from archaeological contexts in addition to paleontological contexts. There have been three distinct phases in this history of coprolite analysis stretching from 1829 up to the present.<br />
<br />
The first phase (1829-1960) began with the birth of the term "coprolite". The value of human coprolites was not recognized until 1896, when a botanist named John William Harshberger suggested that looking at seeds in coprolites could reveal information about ancient diets. The early 1900s that followed Harshberger's suggestion saw researchers examining coprolites for other plant remains, like leaves and twigs, in addition to faunal remains, such as the tiny bones found in fecal deposits from a wide range of archaeological contexts. By the 1950s, people began looking more at the neat stuff in human coprolites. They started looking at hair and feathers as well as shell fragments and insect remains. Today, the study of "macrofossils" (macroscopic plant and animal tissues found in coprolites) is a crucial element of coprolite analysis.<br />
<br />
Eventually, people began seeking smaller sources of evidence that today we call "microfossils" (things like pollen, starch granules, and our beloved parasite eggs). The first evidence of parasitism in the prehistoric New World came from whipworm (<i>Trichuris trichiura</i>) eggs found in an Incan mummy in 1954. This began the transition of coprolite analysis into the second phase (1960-1970). This phase saw the development of specialized techniques for examining microfossils and laid the foundations for later expansion.<br />
<br />
The superstar researcher of the second phase was indisputably a man by the name of Eric Callen. Callen is known to many as the first true coprolite specialist. He completed three major analyses of coprolites recovered from New World archaeological sites and was working on a fourth when he died tragically in 1970. Despite being ridiculed by colleagues for his interest in coprolites (which were regarded as useless by researchers of that time), Callen persevered to become a legend in a now much more respected field. He developed methods for rehydration (a crucial first step in analyzing coprolites) and standardized other techniques for evaluating fecal deposits.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWFoptuw0w-ZIMmIcgkrB7UtoA4Py6Sps0Zbjq2lW_9K4YwZaSBu4I8imwuOmscTk2vEhUUkFdF8rsqahyphenhyphenyx1bHpZ71ZvrJKl2pGSuGEmzJT2gbTuOv1pLUvb6yhS9L4YVwmSy-RqiLzE/s1600/pollen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWFoptuw0w-ZIMmIcgkrB7UtoA4Py6Sps0Zbjq2lW_9K4YwZaSBu4I8imwuOmscTk2vEhUUkFdF8rsqahyphenhyphenyx1bHpZ71ZvrJKl2pGSuGEmzJT2gbTuOv1pLUvb6yhS9L4YVwmSy-RqiLzE/s1600/pollen.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Various pollen grains</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
A wealth of other researchers also worked on coprolites during this second phase. It was during this era that pollen analysis was integrated into coprolite analysis. These early studies yielded incredible insights into the diets, medicinal plant usage, and even seasonal site occupations of prehistoric peoples of the New World. This era also saw the flickering of parasite studies that would ignite the third phase.<br />
<br />
<br />
The current phase of coprolite analysis began in 1970. This phase has been characterized by both refined methods of analysis and by the expanse of these analyses into more interdisciplinary realms. Coprolite analysis grew to be applied in a broader sense to archaeological questions beyond the direct discoveries of dietary remains and evidence of diseases in antiquity. Techniques for quantifying macrofossils were developed over the course of a decade. Macrofossil identification techniques were also becoming more sophisticated and researchers began comparing coprolite data from various archaeological sites to one another. Pollen analyses also became more refined as methods for quantification and interpretation were tested and standardized. The study of phytoliths, fungal spores, and starch granules also became integrated into coprolite analysis. This allowed for more rigorous and fruitful assessments of nutrition through time and space.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicid337j4jknV6gdYvkG-zgO0b5S4l-PdP7u0y_t3FovKlIIjyvQ-Y5mz6KcfsHqgnoZH1j1T10Iijy67BJznKIhLquii7P4gpZIAOJDB2xtnQUxoqb-IJEkai14sj6G2xPvSLRHHGlCs/s1600/phytoliths.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicid337j4jknV6gdYvkG-zgO0b5S4l-PdP7u0y_t3FovKlIIjyvQ-Y5mz6KcfsHqgnoZH1j1T10Iijy67BJznKIhLquii7P4gpZIAOJDB2xtnQUxoqb-IJEkai14sj6G2xPvSLRHHGlCs/s1600/phytoliths.jpg" height="388" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A variety of phytoliths from the Tangue site in China. <br />{A–c = rice bulliform; d–g = rice double peaked; h, i = phytoliths from broomcorn millet husk; <br />j = long saddle; k = scutiform-bulliform from reed; l = common bulliform; m = Cyperus type; <br />n = trapeziform sinuate (tooth type); o = woody phytolith}</span></td></tr>
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Which brings us up to the birth and subsequent growth of the field of archaeoparasitology. With foci in Brazil, Canada, Chile, England, Germany, Peru, and the United States, analyzing coprolites for evidence of parasitism grew exponentially. From the late 1970s right up through the early 1990s, methods for extracting and quantifying parasite eggs were developed. From the refinement of these methods came the ability of researchers to begin examining epidemiology of the past through the lens of parasitism. The following decades would usher in the integration of molecular techniques for finding evidence of parasitism that could not be seen with the naked eye. Studies using PCR and ELISA would revolutionize coprolite analyses to give researchers an even broader perspective of epidemiology in antiquity.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IdSYa-SdC7LjI27Kcyx1CO5r7-0134F1WIUoKc9rCFLNAFR8DC34CGJKJ7oVVfxkJgwDnJ1jh1ZsONkJJCHFNmGz6ZzoFWmBkCGXIQdPeBV4KYq2JRTY4s_fDDix6-7syBHsZ8FOQ9g/s1600/cop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IdSYa-SdC7LjI27Kcyx1CO5r7-0134F1WIUoKc9rCFLNAFR8DC34CGJKJ7oVVfxkJgwDnJ1jh1ZsONkJJCHFNmGz6ZzoFWmBkCGXIQdPeBV4KYq2JRTY4s_fDDix6-7syBHsZ8FOQ9g/s1600/cop.jpg" height="230" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>What's in a Coprolite and What Can They Teach Us?</b><br />
As you likely gathered from the above, coprolites can treasure troves of taxonomic data. Breaking these into discrete components is how researchers conduct analysis, but only by re-combining dataset after discrete analyses are we able to get the full story that coprolites are trying to tell us. Reinhard and Bryant (1992) broke coprolites into their components in the following way:<br />
<br />
1) Biological (Bacteria, Viruses, Fungi, Parasites, Insects, Pollen, Phytoliths, Macrobotanicals, and Macrofaunal Remains)<br />
<br />
2) Mineral and Chemical (Sand, Grit, and Flakes, Charcot-Leyden Crystals, and Chemical Components)<br />
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All of these different elements that can be recovered from coprolites give dimension to the overall analysis. Taking in discrete datasets examining coprolites for a variety of components and synthesizing the information leads to the emergence of the bigger picture. By finding the eggs of fish tapeworms and tiny fish vertebrae in a land-locked population's coprolites, we can begin to understand prehistoric patterns of trade between this population an a coastal population. By finding the minuscule bones of rodents in the coprolites of cave dwellers, we can begin to picture the resource utilizations and ecological displacements that contributed to the origins of now-established zoonotic diseases among human populations today.<br />
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It is obvious, though not always intuitive for some, that diet and disease are intrinsically linked. This is true for the modern world as it was true for populations of the past. Understanding the nature of the diet-disease relationship comes to light by combining the data one can gather from coprolites. These little packets of poop are warehouses of information for understanding such relationships. They not only provide direct evidence (e.g. parasite eggs or pollen grains) but also proxy evidence (e.g. neotropical parasites found in pre-clovis coprolites from the pacific northwest point towards coastal human migration patterns into the new world).<br />
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Coprolite analysis is a vital aspect of archaeoparasitology, but also reaches far into other disciplines. Such studies are important for dietary reconstructions, understanding the interactions of people and their environments, and inferring aspects of early human behaviors. Advances in the areas of medicine, food technology, and environmental adaptation can be reflected by the composition of macrofossils and microfossils present in coprolites.<br />
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Today, coprolite analyses are being used to examine the origins of many diseases that plague modern societies. Diseases as different in their etiologies as Chagas' disease (caused by a parasitic protozoan) and diabetes (a metabolic disorder). Tracing the origins of such diseases is no small or simple task, but can be done through the analysis of the copious little coprolites that await researchers interesting in unveiling their stories.<br />
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><br />
I could go on with a long, eloquent speech doting on the awesomeness of coprolite analysis and droning on about how excited I am about my own dissertation work with these remains, but I think by now you've probably read enough to wet your appetite for exploring coprolite analyses on your own. (Or, at least I hope I've so piqued your interest.) Instead, I will leave you with a somewhat crude, but appropriate message: Don't let anyone give you sh*t for liking coprolites. Seriously, people are quick to put down great work that originates from looking at things that some deem as "gross". (This is typically due to their own ignorance as to the significance of said work.) As a parasitophile, you are probably no stranger to the disgusted reactions of people who don't understand the value of parasitiology. But we don't do it for them, now do we? We do it for us. We do it to better understand the intricacies of the world around us. We do it because our passion knows no bounds. As a coffee cup that sits in an unnamed parasitology lab states: <i>Don't let the bastards get you down!</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0EgTF7_Z4XIoTHLDBnQb0L5PXZd1sgyfWCOKQuFv4_hvFKvNbKNqeBjE8d5a4w7aTjMTAEJyBbVo6qey3cwFr_q2lnSXMMmhh5q-t9RALX2i_n5sZmSXkvd0Er6aI4QyQsbStfBE6yk/s1600/fd58cfaeda7883d1e80e8156d4986d8de1300b93f3d1ab2a35f11f6a903ecd70.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0EgTF7_Z4XIoTHLDBnQb0L5PXZd1sgyfWCOKQuFv4_hvFKvNbKNqeBjE8d5a4w7aTjMTAEJyBbVo6qey3cwFr_q2lnSXMMmhh5q-t9RALX2i_n5sZmSXkvd0Er6aI4QyQsbStfBE6yk/s1600/fd58cfaeda7883d1e80e8156d4986d8de1300b93f3d1ab2a35f11f6a903ecd70.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOcxSKES_bG8dlSMmjB-Twqf8ytmbjbpcXWMTcb629DBgCrGHsY0tgynDAOI0adoY2f_ngcJKBqgEL6OsXB7D-Ht3Tqg9U7h325cseErukE4urKHYaIQpul2IEqPASkzkm9r-DkSaAyws/s1600/36kn31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOcxSKES_bG8dlSMmjB-Twqf8ytmbjbpcXWMTcb629DBgCrGHsY0tgynDAOI0adoY2f_ngcJKBqgEL6OsXB7D-Ht3Tqg9U7h325cseErukE4urKHYaIQpul2IEqPASkzkm9r-DkSaAyws/s1600/36kn31.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-41236780452234712002015-01-18T15:25:00.001-08:002015-01-18T15:26:13.171-08:00Show Me the Mummy!: A Journey into the World of Mummy StudiesThis week I embarked upon my first collaborations with an amazing person that I met my very first semester here. She was an undergraduate back in those days, but she has since grown into working on a graduate degree through a dental program and...oh yeah, she's a Fulbright scholar. ;) She spent a year in Chile examining the hair (which, apparently wasn't always attached to the head) of mummies. I am honored to be joining the effort to get a few papers out from the data that she collected before she made her way back here for dental school. Until these data are published, I can't really say too much about what we are doing, but meeting with her earlier this week got me to thinking that I should do a blogpost on mummy studies.<br />
<br />
So here I am...finally getting back into that series that I wanted to start back in October, when things got crazy. I hope y'all enjoy this journey into the exciting and totally underrated world of mummy studies.<br />
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<b>Mummies Across Time and Space</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw7GfSx1hYlOmPFuDzxe_RhnNEG9NAFVgYmoVG5hV5S-Qxu4AYAAKxl3tsfZrHv0wtFjOPqjOhOK0aXPk6O9JOfPCBZSn_cdhs0pBXTp7S7j3m63EiexyrK4QClpZWJa5LVFeFNSQOprw/s1600/diva.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw7GfSx1hYlOmPFuDzxe_RhnNEG9NAFVgYmoVG5hV5S-Qxu4AYAAKxl3tsfZrHv0wtFjOPqjOhOK0aXPk6O9JOfPCBZSn_cdhs0pBXTp7S7j3m63EiexyrK4QClpZWJa5LVFeFNSQOprw/s1600/diva.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Xin Zhui, a.k.a. "The Diva Mummy"</span></td></tr>
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As soon as you read the word "mummy", I'm sure your first thought was "EGYPT!"...or at least that word was in whatever your first thought was. Yes, there are some awesome mummies in Egypt and those are the mummies that have garnered the post popularity in global media. However, there are LOTS of other places in the world that can boast of their own mummies. There are mummies in Asia...that's right, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, China all have mummies. In fact, one of the most well-preserved mummies ever discovered was the body of a noble woman named Xin Zhui who died in 163 BCE. She lived a lavish lifestyle, but died of a heart attack around the age of 50. The care taken to preserve her body along with all of the artifacts found over 2,000 years after she was entombed have earned her the nickname "The Diva Mummy". Her body was so perfectly preserved that when researchers examined the body, they commented that it was almost like doing an autopsy of a recently deceased person. Her limbs were flexible and her organs were remarkably in-tact. Mummy researchers learned a lot about the health of this person, including that she harbored tapeworms! (Yay parasites!)<br />
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Mummies have also been found in other parts of the world like Europe and South America. I've done a little bit of work with European mummies (from Lithuania and from Italy) that were much younger (1700s and forward) than the Egyptian mummies or most of the mummies from Asia. The previously mentioned work with the Chilean mummies will be the first work I'll have ever done with South American mummies. The Chinchorro mummies, found in present day Chile and Peru, are the oldest artificially mummified human remains in the world. You heard that right. The oldest of these mummies predates the oldest Egyptian mummies by about 4,000 years!<br />
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Now, I could <i>easily</i> spend hours talking to you about the differences in mummies across the world because they are just so diverse and fascinating, but this is a blog post...despite my propensity to sometimes get a little long-winded. Suffice it to say that mummies can (and are) found in a variety of places on this planet and that they range in age from around 7,000 BC to much more modern mummies who died in say, the early 1900s (AD).<br />
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<b>Types of Mummies</b><br />
There are several ways that would could split up mummies by "type", but I'm just going to break it into two broad categories for today's purposes. First, you could have a "prepared", "artificial", or "anthropogenic" mummy. These terms all refer to bodies that did not undergo natural mummification as a product of the corpse's depositional environment. These mummies were instead created by intentional preparation of the bodies. Most people think of these kinds of mummies when they picture mummies. Long before embalming, mummification was common practice for dealing with the remains of the deceased in certain parts of the world. Most people think of Egypt, with their whole wrapping, organs in jars, and pulling the brain out through the nose things, but the way that various cultures prepared mummies are as unique as the cultures themselves. Often times, the bodies were eviscerated and packed with plant material like straw to help maintain the shape of the now hollowed out body. There were frequently local (or sometimes imported) oils, vinegars, and herbs used on the bodies. Bodies were typically tightly wrapped in linen or other textiles and placed in a well-ventilated area to allow for drying. Some bodies were later placed into coffins, sarcophagi, or even glass viewing cases.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjd9-sdN5BjiJJYnSRQaEuYAdppPOYoSGEI5Bb0vS62B_KTbqk6-I3LeRN3rcoFVNnfdoGktwfPP3te8zbE0YFN7VhREyCXuWyeO0Hzn3mypw6WRYfBqjN91tjE-m85tJ8TM-sqzo6Bu4/s1600/otzi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjd9-sdN5BjiJJYnSRQaEuYAdppPOYoSGEI5Bb0vS62B_KTbqk6-I3LeRN3rcoFVNnfdoGktwfPP3te8zbE0YFN7VhREyCXuWyeO0Hzn3mypw6WRYfBqjN91tjE-m85tJ8TM-sqzo6Bu4/s1600/otzi.jpg" height="140" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">Ötzi the Iceman</span></td></tr>
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However, there's more than one way to make a mummy. Some of the most famous mummies in the world are the bodies of people who were mummified unintentionally as a product of the environment in which they died. These of most frequently referred to as "spontaneous" mummies. Arid environments are particularly good for naturally drying out the body. Thus we have some excellent mummies found in desert regions, like the Chinchorro mummies found in South America's Atacama desert that I mentioned earlier. Mummies can also be found in arid environments that are cold, like the mummy known famously as Ötzi the Iceman. This mummy was discovered by some Germans hiking in the Alps. The hikers thought they had stumbled upon the body of another hiker who had had an accident, but it turns out that the body was 5,000 years old. Political issues arose when Italy and Austria both tried to claim the body, but in the end it was determined to have been on Italian soil.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIOsctASSVyKZJwVhailljVTStRJodR8X209ijdSnwfp2uIdppyusJq9Iem5wW1F9aMrEJoTHNGnAE7282v7xi-nr-QIOhzMfA_1IXavTBqrBUIQkd51Yz2ZFQ6BPZ1l03obDp6j8GMOo/s1600/tman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIOsctASSVyKZJwVhailljVTStRJodR8X209ijdSnwfp2uIdppyusJq9Iem5wW1F9aMrEJoTHNGnAE7282v7xi-nr-QIOhzMfA_1IXavTBqrBUIQkd51Yz2ZFQ6BPZ1l03obDp6j8GMOo/s1600/tman.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">Head of the Tollund Man</span></td></tr>
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Bodies can also be preserved by the environments peat bogs. When a person's body is left in a peat bog, the bones tend to dissolve because of the acidity of the bog itself (remember that bones have lots of calcium phosphate, which is basic in nature). However, the acidity of bogs along with having little to no oxygen, and lower ambient temperatures creates an amazing preservation environment for human skin. The skin preserves extremely well, though it does get crazy dark in color making them appear almost like statues in the photographs that I've seen. These conditions include highly acidic water, low temperature, and a lack of oxygen, and combine to preserve but severely tan their skin. While the skin is well-preserved, the bones are generally not, due to the acid in the peat having dissolved the calcium phosphate of bone. The Tollund Man is one of the most famous bog bodies, belonging to a man who was hanged sometime between 375-210 BCE.<br />
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As a fun side note, mummies don't have to be humans. (But you've probably heard of how the Egyptians mummified cats...because you're a smart one!) Egyptians also mummified dogs...and lots of them. I read a neat study a while back that looked at the ectoparasites on Egyptian dog mummies. I did a post about it, and later a presentation at a parasite seminar. (You can read it <a href="http://parasitophilia.blogspot.com/2013/09/ancient-parasites-of-puppies-in-egypt.html" target="_blank">here</a>, but please keep in mind that I wrote it a few years ago and I've learned a lot more about taphonomy and parasitology since then.) Egyptians also commonly mummified pet monkeys, gazelles, mongooses, and a variety of birds. Aside from pets, Egyptians mummified other animals, including crocodiles, baboons, fish, snakes, and even bulls, for religious purposes. I haven't really heard of any other cultures that mummified animals, but I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if such cultures existed.<br />
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<b>Mummy Studies</b><br />
The field of mummy studies is an ever-growing one. As we become more technologically advanced, we are given the opportunity to really examine mummies to help us answer questions about life in the past. Mummy studies give us insights into the worlds of people who lived long ago. By analyzing mummies, we are able to understand when these people died and often times under what circumstances. We learn about their diets, medical practices, and funerary rituals. We learn about their societies and are able to tell their long-since forgotten stories.<br />
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Mummy studies brings together researchers from all kinds of educational backgrounds. The expertise of archaeologists, anthropologists, radiologists, epidemiologists, forensic scientists, palynologists, medical historians, and, of course, archaeoparasitologists, are brought together to put together the stories of these mummies. The patterns of culture, diet, and disease begin to emerge as mummies reveal their secrets to these researchers.<br />
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If any of you are interested in mummy studies, I'd like to inform you of a mummy field school that is currently in the making to begin in the summer of 2016. The course will consist of 15 days in Italy studying the mummies of the region. You'll actually get to do hands-on analyses of some of these mummies as class projects after you learn from experts all about how such analyses are conducted! There's even a possibility that yours truly will be there as either faculty or staff...but let's not get too far ahead of ourselves! (Dissertation OP.)<br />
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<b>Mummies and Archaeoparasitology</b><br />
Many of you may have gotten this far asking the question, "So, when do we get to learn more about parasites?!?!" Okay, okay...let's get to the parasites! Like other areas of mummy studies, the recovery of parasite data is largely dependent on the preservation environment and on the available technology of the people studying mummy parasitism. The analysis of mummified remains can (and has) revealed evidence of ectoparasites (as you already know from talking about the ticks and hippoboscids found on the mummies of dogs from Egypt), helminths (i.e. "worms"), and even protozoans. Yes, there's a little something for every kind of parasitophiliac when it comes to mummy studies!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-hV7yb48-FVK0dQkt5iYrT54c5wA9Uze-DY4ptobRUGefTDtYSaQ06A4en-8SRnivWSQRPoGqC6cvSUCjAe4ao9ZsKALKlZ7N9pnjfhBdXGOU2z3vqJFarDHHRP-vhI5tGPLB2l-BqaE/s1600/lice.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-hV7yb48-FVK0dQkt5iYrT54c5wA9Uze-DY4ptobRUGefTDtYSaQ06A4en-8SRnivWSQRPoGqC6cvSUCjAe4ao9ZsKALKlZ7N9pnjfhBdXGOU2z3vqJFarDHHRP-vhI5tGPLB2l-BqaE/s1600/lice.png" height="241" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Lice from a pre-columbian, Chilean mummy.<br /><a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0076818" target="_blank">Click here for a link to the paper.</a></span></td></tr>
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One of the coolest things about ectoparasites is that they tend to preserve well since we are typically referring to arthropods like ticks, fleas, and lice when we use the term "ectoparasite". In terms of human mummies, lice are the paydirt of ectoparasite-related archaeoparasitology. Lice can not only be found in their adult states on mummies, but also exist in the form of nits and nymphs. For those who don't know, "nits" are cases that house developing lice and are cemented onto the shafts of hair in an infested person. These nits, both with and without nymphs inside of them, can be found on the hairs of mummies. Counting the number of these nits on a small section of hair can allow for quantified comparative data across various analyses of head lice and their mummified hosts. Currently, I'm involved in the preparation of a paper or two that will look at the lice of mummies from the Atacama desert of South America. I'll be sure to post all about it when this paper (or papers) is (are) published. Be on the lookout! ;)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1kepDhl09ZomCd1jMLfvDvqTSQlEsOr5UD73TcBOUK72uzbpEtQzhEyheMuSpnhAfHReKcaTPVZ6afv19F5rK-QdJsUKlCxyShi8X1kC1LpMIbNqqqyyfrNoi5hJOQaTDJ5YeRYiZqaA/s1600/louse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1kepDhl09ZomCd1jMLfvDvqTSQlEsOr5UD73TcBOUK72uzbpEtQzhEyheMuSpnhAfHReKcaTPVZ6afv19F5rK-QdJsUKlCxyShi8X1kC1LpMIbNqqqyyfrNoi5hJOQaTDJ5YeRYiZqaA/s1600/louse.jpg" height="217" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Stole this one from my major professor's Facebook page. <br />It's an adult louse from a South American mummy!</span></td></tr>
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Most of the studies published with regard to archaeoparasitology of mummies focus on the discovery of parasitic helminths. In fact, the first archaeoparasitological study ever published (Ruffer in 1910) described the discovery of calcified <i>Schistosoma</i> sp. eggs in the kidneys of two 12th dynasty Egyptian mummies. Since those days, mummies from around the world have revealed evidence of infections with roundworms (<i>Ascaris lumbricoides, Strongyloides stercoralis, Trichostrongylus </i>sp., <i>Trichuris trichiura, </i>etc.), tapeworms (most often <i>Taenia</i> sp.), and flukes (<i>Clonorchis sinensis</i>, <i>Dicrocoelium dendriticum, Gymnophalloides seoi, Metagonimus yokogawai, Schistosoma </i>sp., etc.).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVCuTHDWV0GETdNKfSnmxLbd0gfEN7x__mYODHRCprJhYxbORAKr4VmaKrc7_ZGP5ZXKQ0ye19waI1_Ih-Q4k2TMpL153afKOX9Hf5CGe2xhPrgfY0OrIx4WFoUz8xHc1u4YSIh34NVE4/s1600/paragon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVCuTHDWV0GETdNKfSnmxLbd0gfEN7x__mYODHRCprJhYxbORAKr4VmaKrc7_ZGP5ZXKQ0ye19waI1_Ih-Q4k2TMpL153afKOX9Hf5CGe2xhPrgfY0OrIx4WFoUz8xHc1u4YSIh34NVE4/s1600/paragon.jpg" height="233" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Paragonimus westermani</i> eggs from <br />the liver of a female, Korean mummy. <br /><a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25031462" target="_blank">Click here for a link to the paper.</a></span></td></tr>
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My personal experience with mummies is limited, but growing with every passing semester. I've seen <i>Ascaris lumbricoides</i> and <i>Trichuris trichiura</i> eggs in a mummy from Lithuania and <i>Clonorchis sinensis</i> eggs from a Korean mummy. I've also analyzed mummies from other places and not found any parasite eggs. I'm hoping to expand this in the future as I become more involved with mummy studies.<br />
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Another aspect of studying mummy parasites is to look for things that can't actually be seen with our human eyes. I'm talking of course about protozoan parasites (one of my favorite groups of parasitic organisms!). Because these are delicate, single-celled organisms, they don't preserve in the way that helminth eggs preserve. Instead of leaving behind a physical form that can be found with the aid of a microscope, these parasites leave behind molecular traces that can be detected with the use of serological test kits, such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), or through the use of DNA detection techniques, such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR). These techniques have been most frequently utilized to identify parasites in archaeological materials such as coprolites and latrine sediments, but they have also been applied to mummy studies. For example, researchers have revealed that ancient peoples were infected with malaria (caused by <i>Plasmodium</i> sp.) by analyzing bone, muscles, and skin.<br />
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The conclusion of this section brings us back to the infinite awesomeness that will be the mummy field school mentioned earlier. Students will be working on independent research projects with the mummies. Some of those students will be looking specifically at the parasites that infected these individuals in life. It will be fascinating to see what new information will come from the systematic examination of these individuals over time.<br />
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><br />
The world of mummy studies is a complex, interdisciplinary area with lots of discoveries just waiting to emerge from hard work of enthusiastic researchers. What we can learn from the past through archaeological material is always a puzzle, but mummies give us the unique ability to equate data with a particular individual rather than guessing at how many people are represented by a group of coprolites or a gram of latrine sediments. Understanding the diets, medical advancements, seasonality of death, and of course the diseases of mummies allows us to paint an epidemiological picture of past societies one person at a time. As I grow to be a more competent archaeoparasitologist, I can only hope that my path will cross with more and more of these astoundingly interesting individuals and the parasites that they hold on or within them.JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-78814578244532460112015-01-11T08:12:00.000-08:002015-01-11T08:14:19.889-08:00The Nivelles Story: My Second Peer-Reviewed Paper Makes JASI get it. I kind of dropped the ball for, oh, three months. I can't even guarantee that I'm officially picking it back up again today. Last semester was insanely busy and went by before I could blink. I'm happy to report that other than being crazy it went really well for me. I published a book, got a paper out (for which I was lead author), passed my comprehensive exams, and lined up a ton (technical term) of new projects for the Spring. This semester doesn't look like it will be any slower (which isn't a bad thing), so I will try my best to keep up with posts, but please forgive me if I again drop the ball. (I promise to pick it up again when I get the chance!)<br />
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Today, I'm going to talk to you a little bit about my latest publication, which was published this month. This paper was quite a doozy! ("Doozy" is defined by Merriam-Webster as: "something that is unusually good, bad, big, severe, etc."... this paper was unusually good, bad, big, and a whole host of other words.)<br />
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My involvement with this paper began long after the analyses were complete. The story begins back in 2011, long before I made my way up to Nebraska. Dr. Karl Reinhard's Archaeoparasitology class began analyzing coproites excavated from skeletonized remains resting in Nivelles, Belgium. The coprolites were many, but hailed from only three individuals. These individuals had lived in this part of Europe during the Medieval period, a time notoriously ridden with filth and disease. As one would expect, these individuals were found to have been hosts to parasitic worms, namely <i>Trichuris trichiura</i> (the human whipworm) and <i>Ascaris lumbricoides </i>(the human mawworm or "giant intestinal roundworm"). European archaeoparasitology is known to yield evidence of such worms in great abundance, especially if you go back in time when our understanding of disease was dominated by miasmatism (the belief that diseases were caused by smells and "bad air" rather that pathogens as we know them to be caused by today).<br />
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Finding these individuals to be infected with worms was interesting and important, but it was the infections of a particular individual (from Burial 122) that made this study phenomenal. That individual was an elderly woman. Bone pathology reports tell us that she had no teeth and was suffering from arthritis. The coprolites taken from her remains were abnormally large in size and were much more numerous than would typically be found in such contexts. The coprolites were also backed up beyond her sacral region and into her lumbar region. This indicated that she likely suffered from a bowel obstruction or some other issue that led to constipation. This poor woman probably suffered greatly in her final days.<br />
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Examination of her coprolites revealed an abnormal amount of wheat glume in her feces. The fiber rife within her could have contributed to the obstruction, but why would she have been eating it in the first place? And why <i>so much</i> of it? As it turns out, this was a way that Medieval doctors sometimes treated people who were burdened by intestinal worms...and this lady had a major problem with worms.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoOIAz4_BDJuiAf0iBikCxqd-cND6eYZuFh7H_vDnKj_OSps3qYJ8vlSPfpEaUBAr8cS-IlPD39XWyvBnGW7_Q9VJcCFAB17ZzVAeCfX7q5Ioib-VilMi3K35fAbOy5Yxn09U9urCAiY4/s1600/Figure+9.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoOIAz4_BDJuiAf0iBikCxqd-cND6eYZuFh7H_vDnKj_OSps3qYJ8vlSPfpEaUBAr8cS-IlPD39XWyvBnGW7_Q9VJcCFAB17ZzVAeCfX7q5Ioib-VilMi3K35fAbOy5Yxn09U9urCAiY4/s1600/Figure+9.jpg" height="347" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Figure. 9</b>. Average number of eggs per gram as represented by all three burial sites. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Gray bars represent <i>Trichuris trichiura </i>while black bars represent<i> Ascaris lumbricoides</i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">[From Racz et al., 2015]</span></div>
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As you can see from the histogram above, this woman suffered from two different types of worms AND suffered an EXTREMELY heavy infection with whipworms. Keep in mind that the above represents <i>average</i> eggs per <i>gram</i> of feces. That's a LOT of freaking whipworm eggs to find in one person. Let's not forget she also had mawworm eggs alongside those whipworm eggs. Here's a table from the paper that will (or at least should) blow your mind.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhjVqE22eCS4yQUj9EZUTA2gS_At5xu0kwO8gkQjxmCZe8-8eWRGhbekLzwnMpWFrl7gilUl15bQdNx7LDbcCQlruOF-IL4Uk8PI0f-zbMlx3Bu9WRVQeQzk3KfP69smpj7ZZJB9jajAo/s1600/Table+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhjVqE22eCS4yQUj9EZUTA2gS_At5xu0kwO8gkQjxmCZe8-8eWRGhbekLzwnMpWFrl7gilUl15bQdNx7LDbcCQlruOF-IL4Uk8PI0f-zbMlx3Bu9WRVQeQzk3KfP69smpj7ZZJB9jajAo/s1600/Table+4.jpg" height="296" width="640" /></a></div>
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[From Racz et al., 2015]</div>
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Having so many worms in any one of these coprolite is staggering, but remember that <i>all 8 of these coprolites were inside ONE person</i>! If you add up the "eggs per coprolite" values, you get over 200,000 mawworm eggs and over 1.5 million whipworm eggs...again, <i>all inside of the same person</i>. (Seriously, just let that sink in for a moment.) A whipworm infection this bad has never been reported in anyone. This discovery brings our understanding of Medieval filth and disease to a whole new level. </div>
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Additionally, a female whipworm can only lay about 30K-60K eggs a day (depending on your information source). Though we don't know how long these eggs were sitting inside of this severely constipated woman, we do know that she had to have more than a single worm laying eggs. Having a heavy load of whipworms can cause people to have problems like prolapsed rectum and compromised peristaltic activity of the intestines. (Which translates to: your rectum falls out of your butt and your intestines can't push poo out of you anymore because the muscles aren't working right.) The paper concludes that the extreme parasitism was likely affiliated with the cause of death for this woman.</div>
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The paper also discussed the importance of looking at parasite egg taphonomy (how things deteriorate or decay over time) and the co-infection of two worm species as it relates to other aspects of European archaeoparasitology.</div>
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I officially joined the Nivelles team as a co-author in my second year, though I had heard all about it in my first semester. You see, the manuscript was pieced together from the term projects of four students and introductory material from colleagues in Europe. The lead author had been working on trying to bring everyone's work together, but it still didn't read like it was written by one person. At the suggestion of my major professor, I worked with the lead author to cut, re-write, and otherwise clean up the manuscript so that it was publishable. This took up much more of my time than I had anticipated, but it was worth it once we finally got it submission-ready. In February, 2014, I took the position of corresponding author and pulled the manuscript through the submission process. We submitted to the Journal of Archaeological Science, and we received excellent reviews. After lots and lots of editing, we finally sent back the final proofs in October, 2014. Our paper was set to be published online in November and in print the following January. That's right, from submitting the first time to print publication was almost a full year. (This doesn't even include the time spent editing prior to submission.)</div>
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b></div>
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Despite all the headaches, this was such an amazing project to be a part of, even in the later stages. The author line can boast of researchers spanning four countries on three different continents. It involved an undergraduate, two master's students, two PhD students, and senior researchers from multiple universities. It was a really cool thing to be involved in, and I'm very thankful to have been brought on to help. </div>
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We even got some media attention for the work! Check out the article about it <a href="http://newsroom.unl.edu/announce/snr/3849/21744" target="_blank"><span style="color: white;">here</span></a>!</div>
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Finally, as might become tradition for parasite papers that I publish, here is a title shot for your viewing pleasure. :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_osSefJaLtRTxAqJYWq1VWE8dKhpIyfFBPhvi9Tz64gaWw1QRZVAKeY2Kbfk1OzSwMwSsC6eS3ifQ6QooQxBBUAb3C4s8Ov2vnm8MwRNqEbRdXplYPWvztzc10Dtjw71_HUNwoMbIYQs/s1600/Racz+et+al.,+2015-Screenshot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_osSefJaLtRTxAqJYWq1VWE8dKhpIyfFBPhvi9Tz64gaWw1QRZVAKeY2Kbfk1OzSwMwSsC6eS3ifQ6QooQxBBUAb3C4s8Ov2vnm8MwRNqEbRdXplYPWvztzc10Dtjw71_HUNwoMbIYQs/s1600/Racz+et+al.,+2015-Screenshot.jpg" height="342" width="640" /></a></div>
JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-7508191982184837052014-10-05T11:26:00.005-07:002014-10-05T11:40:00.746-07:00A Journey into the World of Paleoparasitology: Learning New Things from Old StuffGiven my research interests, this type of post is LONG overdue. I've decided that I need to do a series of posts about the field of paleoparasitology. Today, I'm going to start with some basic introductory stuff to prepare you for the next few weeks. So, pull up a chair, pour yourself a nice cup of hot tea, and prepare to be amazed by the work of researchers exploring a lost world of parasites.<br />
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<b>Introductions</b></div>
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First things first. Let's talk terminology...after all, without understanding the proper technobabble one can't hold a conversation about a given subject. We'll start with an easy one:<br />
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<i>Paleoparasitology</i>--This word refers to a subfield of Paleontology that focuses on parasitic organisms of the past and on the relationships of parasites, vectors, and hosts in the past. Goncalves et al. (2003) stated, "Paleoparasitology is the study of parasites in archaeological material." Indeed, the majority of paleoparasitological studies have derived from the use of ancient materials most often obtained via excavation. The word is sometimes used in reference to any such materials, but in 1992 Dr. Karl J. Reinhard (my major professor) called for this term to refer solely to studies of "non-human, paleontological materials". In the same paper, he suggested that the term "archaeoparasitology" be used to describe the analysis of materials from human contexts for evidence of parasitism. </div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdnxlMZrEQSNKZ62Q0-h5Cvp8p_kRrel5rowVulzFAHEO_8VqtN5yJoJ1ZKeBO-VxwVkK8MJ_UyUCnFbrNvYm6qSy4NCPwjCApfFGtF9r7Ssi7DNdkJ4peSeB7QIVQJDBrtUPif4-Dd1c/s1600/Lith+11-Ascaris.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdnxlMZrEQSNKZ62Q0-h5Cvp8p_kRrel5rowVulzFAHEO_8VqtN5yJoJ1ZKeBO-VxwVkK8MJ_UyUCnFbrNvYm6qSy4NCPwjCApfFGtF9r7Ssi7DNdkJ4peSeB7QIVQJDBrtUPif4-Dd1c/s1600/Lith+11-Ascaris.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ascaris lumbricoides</i> egg <br />
from a Lithuanian mummy.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This brings us to <i>Archaeoparasitology</i>, which you now know refers to the <br />
study of parasites from ancient materials of strictly human origin (e.g. coprolites, latrine sediments, and mummy intestines). This field is specific, <br />
but highly interdisciplinary at the same time. The researchers within this field come from diverse backgrounds as organismal biologists, epidemiologists, ecologists, archaeologists, anthropologists, and paleopathologists, just to name a few. Many of the methods utilized in this field are borrowed from techniques used in other fields, such as veterinary parasitology or palynology.</div>
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While we are on the subject: <i>Coprolites</i>, if you don't already know, are desiccated feces.</div>
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Also, <i>palynology</i> refers to the study of "palynomorphs", which are tiny things found in air, water, or sediments including things like dinocysts, spores, or the little guys I like known as pollen. This field grew out of geology and is important for lots of reasons, but we will focus on the use of pollen as it relates to diet and environment so that we can tie it in with our understanding of parasitism in antiquity.</div>
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<b>A Brief History of Paleoparasitology</b></div>
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The history of this field could fill a week's worth of lectures in a formal class setting (possibly more depending on the professor). I won't go through all of the details, but here's a few of the highlights in a timeline format:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Marc_Armand_Ruffer.jpg/250px-Marc_Armand_Ruffer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Marc_Armand_Ruffer.jpg/250px-Marc_Armand_Ruffer.jpg" height="320" width="217" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sir Marc Armand Ruffer, the first person to <br />
describe parasite eggs from archaeological contexts.</td></tr>
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~1910--Sir Marc Armand Ruffer publishes his findings of <i>Schistosoma haematobium</i> eggs (that's one of the three species of blood flukes that infect humans) in mummified kidneys from Egyptians dating to the 20th Dynasty (1250-1100 BC). This is the first time anyone had reported parasites from mummies, or any type of archaeological material for that matter.</div>
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~1921--Samuel T. Darling published a paper discussing the origins of South American hookworm infections among indigenous peoples based on assumptions regarding prehistoric human migrations.</div>
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~1925--Ernest T. Seton publishes <i>On the Study of Scatology</i> in the <i>Journal of Mammology</i>, which was important for demonstrating how fecal shape and content could be used to identify what order of mammal had deposited the material.</div>
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~1944--Lothar Szidat reported finding eggs from two geohelminth species (<i>Trichuris trichiura </i>a.k.a. the human whipworm and <i>Ascaris lumbricoides</i> a.k.a. "mawworms") in bog bodies from Prussia.</div>
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~1947--Van Cleave and Ross published an important methological paper describing the use of trisodium phospate for the rehydration of coprolites. The use of trisodium phosphate has now been applied to the rehydration of mummified tissues as well.</div>
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~1955--E.L. Taylor publishes his discovery of parasitic helminths recovered from a medieval cesspit. He was the first person to examine cesspits from this time period. Many others have followed in his footsteps to give us an exciting look into medieval parasitism.</div>
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~1955 & 1960--In two separate publications, Eric Callen and Thomas Cameron improved rehydration techniques. The 1960 article is one of the most frequently cited paleoparasitological papers.</div>
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The 1960s and 1970s saw an explosion of highly influential articles published in the field. The time period from 1910 up to the 1970s is often referred to as the "Exploratory Phase" of archaeoparasitology. This phase was followed by the "Population Phase" of the late 1970s through the late 1980s and by the "Synthesis Phase" in during which archaeology fused with parasitological theories. We will talk more about the predominant theoretical constructs of the field in a later post.</div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSuRc3PF4nYO-vZqee_03bXujK0avULnSMK3YViHWX_SCunybVPOg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="141" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSuRc3PF4nYO-vZqee_03bXujK0avULnSMK3YViHWX_SCunybVPOg" style="cursor: move;" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An example of an ELISA <br />
(enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay)<br />
used to detect parasite antigens.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The Synthesis Phase of archaeoparasitology was characterized by the integration of methodologies from other disciplines into the field. These borrowed techniques were adapted, reviewed, and refined throughout the 1980s and 1990s to establish methodological standards for studying parasitism via archaeological materials. Sadly, many of these standards have been lost in the influx of poorly-trained new-comers to the field and the well-established and painstakingly tested techniques can be found perverted in contemporary journal articles. Evolution of methods will be the subject of a future post.</div>
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With new technological advances in other fields came the application of new techniques in the field of paleoparasitology. The use of molecular techniques stretching from the 1990s onward has opened the door to paleoserology and the study of ancient DNA for looking at parasitism in the past. These topics will also be covered by a future post within this series.<br />
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<b>The Big Questions of the Field</b><br />
Every field has "big questions" associated with it, and paleoparasitology is no different. However, these questions are far broader and vary in their importance based on which researcher you are talking to.<br />
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The co-evolution of hosts and parasites is one region with lots of big questions. How long have humans been associated with parasite x? Did dinosaurs have parasites that evolved to parasitize modern archosaurians? Have modern advancements in helminth removal led to over-active immune systems leading to autoimmune diseases?<br />
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Tying into co-evolution questions are ecological questions, such as how host associations led to zoonotic infections in the past. ("Zoonosis" refers to a disease passed from animals to humans, e.g. rabies.) How long ago did Toxoplasma gondii establish itself in human populations?<br />
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Ecological questions involving humans, in turn, lead to behavioral and cultural questions. How did living in rockshelters and eating woodrats pull humans into the transmission cycle of Trypanosoma cruzi? How did domestication lead to human acquisition of new parasites? How did the diets of early people affect parasitism among populations? How did the lifestyles of hunter-gatherers as compared to agriculturalist predispose these groups to different types of parasites (and vice versa)?<br />
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Further branching off of these kinds of questions are questions of what parasitism can tell us about past societies. Was population x dealing with a sanitation crisis? How could a culture living far inland be infected with a parasite associated with marine fish? If parasite x requires conditions a, b, and c, how could population y have ever traveled using route z?<br />
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Questions regarding how parasitic infections were recognized, diagnosed, treated, spread, and otherwise dealt with during a variety of time periods at numerous geographic locations are the heart of paleoparasitology. Additional questions about human cultures, societal structures, subsistence patterns, migrational patterns, and trading routes can also be raised when dealing with parasite data.</div>
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b></div>
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The field of paleoparasitology has a long and colorful past painted by the adroit work of observant naturalists and archaeologists. As we will learn over the course of the next several weeks, this field is interesting for both what has been discovered and for what is yet to be discovered. I suppose this could be said for any area of science, but it is especially exciting, for me at least, to add a time component to the research of parasitism. The big questions that come up within this field are as diverse as the researchers attempting to address them. The window of the past brings forth a better understanding of things as they were so that we can more efficiently address the nature of things as they are. I hope that over the next several weeks you will join me on this journey into the world of paleoparasitology.<br />
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<a href="http://www.iftm-hp.org/images/cover_paleo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.iftm-hp.org/images/cover_paleo.jpg" height="200" width="158" /></a><b>Further Readings</b></div>
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If you are interested in the field of paleoparasitology or any subdiscipline thereof, I would encourage you to purchase <a href="http://portal.fiocruz.br/pt-br/content/foundations-paleoparasitology" target="_blank">this book</a>. It is the best compilation of work in this area. In fact, it won one of Brazil's most natural sciences book awards, the Prêmio Jabuti, or "Tortoise Award." (Which you can learn more about <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=pt&u=http://premiojabuti.com.br/&prev=/search%3Fq%3DPr%25C3%25AAmio%2BJabuti,%26rlz%3D1C1VSNC_enUS596US599%26es_sm%3D122" target="_blank">here </a>if you are interested. Also, <a href="http://newsroom.unl.edu/announce/todayatunl/1798/9999" target="_blank">here </a>is a link to a news release about the book and about the Science Without Borders grant related to the collaborative work of the editors.) I'll be using my copy of this book as a reference for the series of posts relating to this field. (Also, the timeline stemmed from a much more detailed and informative timeline found in the first chapter of this book.)</div>
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Additionally, <a href="http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1405&context=natrespapers" target="_blank">here's</a> a great article published in the special edition 100th volume of the Journal of Parasitology that relates to paleoparasitology. It's a must-read for anyone interested!</div>
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Also, here are the citations mentioned in the post above:</div>
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Gonçalves, M.L.C., A. Araújo, and L.F. Ferreira (2003) Human intestinal parasites in the past: New findings and a review. Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz 98(Suppl 1):103-118.</div>
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Reinhard, K.J. (1992) Parasitology as an interpretive tool in archaeology. American Antiquity 57(2):231-245.</div>
JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-33536702185122986992014-09-21T09:27:00.000-07:002014-09-21T09:27:00.016-07:00Officially an Author (Part II): Announcing My First Scientific PublicationHey all! Well, it finally happened. After years as a graduate student, I have finally acquired my first piece of "academic currency". I thought it would be good to tell you guys a little bit more about it in this post and then give you a small preview of some other papers that I have in the works. Happy reading! :)<br />
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In February of this year, our lab received samples from mummies interred beneath the Dominican Church of the Holy Spirit in Vilinus, Lithuania. These samples represented intestinal, abdominal, and rectal contents from a handful of individual mummies. We analyzed these samples in search of parasites, starches, and pollen grains. The analysis was conducted by myself, my major professor, and a UCARE student whom we lovingly referred to as our "under-grunt". (UCARE is a program through our university that sponsors undergraduate research. It stands for "Undergraduate Creative Activities and Research Experiences".)<br />
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By the end of the month, we had not only finished the parasite analysis (the pollen analysis extended for another month or so), but I had also prepared a manuscript for publication regarding our parasite findings. Basically, we had found that one of the ten samples analyzed contained the eggs of both <i>Ascaris lumbricoides</i> (human mawworm) and <i>Trichuris trichiura </i>(human whipworm). These findings were exciting (aside from the fact that we found parasite eggs, which is always a cool thing) because this represented the first report of parasitic geohelminths in mummies from this area dating to this time period (18th-19th century). We also found lots of really cool mites along with their eggs, and we were able to discuss differential preservation of parasite eggs within mummy contexts because we found underdeveloped <i>T. trichiura</i> eggs. The discovery of these underdeveloped eggs coupled with encountering these eggs in groups of 2, 3, or in one case 9, led us to conclude that we had rehydrated material that had once had a female <i>T. trichiura</i> embedded within it. As the gravid (i.e. full of eggs) female decomposed, the eggs preserved inside of the mummy, but were never able to embryonate. This discovery highlights a problem that one only encounters when dealing with mummies as archaeoparasitological analysis of coprolites (desiccated feces) or latrine/privy/sewer/water closet sediments will only yield eggs that are more developmentally advanced because they were passed by the female and subsequently by the depositor of the feces. Hence, people who study mummy parasites must be able to recognize parasite eggs that are underdeveloped in addition to recognizing their fully-developed counterparts.<br />
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We sent this paper to our co-authors in Lithuania and everyone gave the manuscript the green light for submission. We chose to submit our paper to the <i>International Journal for Paleopathology </i>(henceforth known as "IJPP"). Before March had even rolled around we were anxiously awaiting reviewer comments. I'll spare you the details of the reviewer comments (both the constructive ones and the ones that merely demonstrated the reviewer's complete lack of familiarity with basic archaeoparasitological methodologies and concepts). The take-home here is that I got my baptism under fire as an author undergoing the peer-review process.<br />
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This may have been my first paper, but I wasn't completely naive when it came to the process. I had been told (or more precisely "warned") about how one could receive scathing reviews or about how reviewers weren't always well-suited to critique the work that they were reading. I was prepared to have a thick skin and to take every comment as a device for perfecting our paper. I was prepared to make both minor and major changes and to accept the criticism from people I assumed to be much more experienced than myself. What I was not prepared for were the asinine comments that served no purpose other than to point out "errors" that didn't really exist. I quickly learned that some of the reviewers could in no way be classified as my "peers", much less as experts in the field if they didn't understand some of the most fundamental concepts of the discipline. It was an odd experience, to say the least.<br />
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To balance out the oddness, we did have some really great comments from reviewers as well. We were asked to revise and resubmit. (Which is what every author wants to hear!) We made the changes. The paper went from a case study to a brief communication and we dropped all of the information about the mites. (Something for another paper someday.) We re-submitted and after a few weeks, the paper came back with additional reviewer comments and we were asked to make more dramatic changes and to resubmit again. We made said changes, shifting the focus of the article more toward the taphonomic aspects of the paper. We again, resubmitted. We were met with an additional request to revise and resubmit. By the end of it all, we had a very different looking manuscript than we had begun with, but we had a great article that was about to be published, which made all of the hassle worthwhile.<br />
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After editorial corrections and approving galley proofs, it finally happened. In August, a whole half of a year after the initial submission, I saw my name as first author on my first ever peer-reviewed scientific article. My first piece of primary literature will forever be cited as "Morrow et al., 2014". That's a good feeling!<br />
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><br />
Sometime, it's okay to be a "late bloomer" as a scientist. I may not have had a publication as an undergraduate or even as a master's student, but my first one really was special. My first one taught me the skill of navigating the submission process as I was the corresponding author in charge of submission and communication with my co-authors. It taught me the importance of diplomacy and collaboration as I was in charge of coordinating revision efforts. It taught me patience, that the review process takes time whether you spend weeks or years preparing a manuscript. Most importantly, it taught me to handle idiotic comments in tactful, diplomatic language without buckling to the whims of reviewers who are blatantly incorrect in their assertions. (And, of course, it taught me to take constructive criticism...providing that it is, in fact, constructive...and use it as the wet stone to sharpen the blade of an incredible manuscript.) I'm so thankful that this particular experience was my first experience with peer-reviewed publication as bonafide scientist. Here's to many more in my future!<br />
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The article can be found online in all of it's full-color glory <a href="https://www.academia.edu/8153103/Taphonomic_considerations_of_a_whipworm_infection_in_a_mummy_from_the_Dominican_Church_of_the_Holy_Spirit_Vilnius_Lithuania" target="_blank">here </a>if you are interested.<br />
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Ha! You thought I forgot about your sneak previews, didn't you! Fear not, faithful readers, for I shall never let you down! I can't disclose much until things actually get published, but here's a few topics covered by some of my "works in progress". In no particular order:</div>
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-Lack of parasites from embalming jars containing the remains of members of a very prominent Italian family. [Submitted.]</div>
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-Parasites from coprolites out of Medieval burials. [Just resubmitted this one for publication on Friday!</div>
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-Insects from an Italian mummy who is now a saint...making the insect remains "holy relics". (True story.) [In revision with co-authors.]</div>
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-Pollen/Dietary analysis of Lithuanian mummies. [Working on a manuscript.]</div>
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-Parasites from 1,200-1,400 year-old coprolites sealed beneath an adobe floor in a cave in Mexico. [Funding pending.]</div>
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-New methods for recovering parasite information from previously un-utilized source materials. [Funding pending.]</div>
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-Analyses of mites from European mummies. [Analysis ongoing.]</div>
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-Analysis of sediments from a sod house wall. [Analysis scheduled for later this semester.]</div>
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-Pollen and possible parasite analysis from a 8,000-9,000 year old Brazilian burial site. [Analysis scheduled for the Spring.]</div>
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-An assessment of the efficiency of flotation for pollen recovery out of karstic soils. [Analysis scheduled for the Spring.]</div>
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-A comparative review of archaeoparasitiological methods in contemporary literature. [Ongoing work on a manuscript.]</div>
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-Lice collected from a pre-clovis cave. [Waiting for samples.]</div>
JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-19620184154937359232014-09-14T16:02:00.000-07:002014-09-14T16:02:35.493-07:00Officially an Author (Part I): Announcing My First Scientific BookAuthor copies are in, so everything feels very official. My new book has been published since August, but my three complementary author copies just came in early September. I thought it would be good to give a little information about my book for anyone wanting to know more! :)<br />
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First of all, the book is titled: <i>The Biology and Identification of the Coccidia (Apicomplexa) of Turtles of the World</i>. This book has been a long time in the making. The back-story for this book begins with a young biologist in her first year of graduate school trying hard to come up with a topic for her thesis. She had her mind made up about becoming a herpetologist (person who studies reptiles and amphibians), but she had a hobby-like fascination with parasites. She did a quick Google Scholar search one day for "reptile parasite" and started sifting through scientific papers. Her eyes were drawn to a paper titled: "<i>Eimeria trachemydis</i> n. sp.(Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) and other eimerians from the red-eared slider, <i>Trachemys scripta elegans</i> (Reptilia: Testudines), in northcentral Texas". The authors were Steve Upton and Chris McAllister.<br />
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As you've probably guessed by now, the woman in the story is, in fact, the woman speaking to you now. My first thought upon seeing this title was, "Okay, I know what apicomplexans are, but what is this weird family?" I read further seeing only morphological terms that were totally Greek to me and finding another then-unfamiliar term...<i>coccidian</i>. I felt overwhelmed and excited and intrigued all at once. These sounded like cool parasites, but just what the heck <i>were</i> they??? Google to the rescue. Before my eyes lay page after page on these amazing little protozoans. I was sold. I would work with turtle parasites for my thesis. The only problems were that we didn't have a herpetologist <i>or</i> a parasitologist at my university!<br />
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I eventually put together my thesis proposal and submitted it to my committee for approval. Despite my lack of access to a local an expert in herpetology or in parasitology, my committe approved my project. I planned on collecting red-eared sliders from a university-owned pond, housing them until they pooped, collecting their poop, and looking for these coccidian things in the poop. Simple. Straightforward. All of the other words that wrongfully describe this type of work.<br />
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While trying to follow the unfamiliar language and protocols, I came to the realization that I needed help. I looked back at the paper that had made me want to work with these as-of-yet-non-existent parasites. My answer became clear. I wrote to the authors. One of the authors has to this day never responded. The other responded within a day or two of me sending out a cry for help. Dr. Upton was excited and more than willing to help me. He gave me lots of great advice and several tips on how to tweek what I was doing. He also provided me with a few papers to help me along and slowly the project started to come together. I was still having trouble, though, and one day I just stopped hearing from him. I was afraid I had said something wrong or dumb. After a while, I decided to e-mail another name that had popped up on many of the papers I had been reading.<br />
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I sent a hopefully-not-transparently-desperate e-mail to Dr. Don Duszynski asking, again, for help. The response I got back was amazing. Duszynski not only answered my questions and helped me a LOT with the project, he also invited me to help him to <i>write a monograph compiling all of the known literature on turtle coccidia</i>. I was astounded. How could this guy, this HUGE name in coccidian biology possibly want me to co-author a book with him? I was a nobody. Unpublished. A very green graduate student. A person who hadn't even heard of a coccidian a year ago. And he wanted <i>me</i> to help?! It was a tremendous honor that I didn't feel I deserved to have. Perhaps that is why he asked in the first place, because he knew I would work hard to make up for my lack of knowledge. Or maybe he just needed someone who could put all the data into a word document so that he didn't have to do anything outside of the interpretive writing. Either way, I was in.<br />
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I later learned that Dr. Upton had passed away. I was deeply saddened that I never got to meet him in person, but I was happy to have known him via e-mail. I was so lucky to have had all of his help. He was an incredible person to take the time to help me, especially while knowing he didn't have a lot of time left himself. I will always owe some of my success to him for his guidance in those early stages of my career. I'm so grateful for his kindness and for the passion he had for coccidia.<br />
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My thesis work hit many roadblocks, most of which were associated with not having the proper equipment to do what I was looking to do. In order to graduate (though a year later than planned), I had to change my thesis topic. However, I tried in vain to continue the turtle coccidia project as an independent study. I also maintained my correspondences with Don and worked on the turtle coccidia monograph on the side. Despite my change in thesis topic, Don insisted that I accompany him to a parasite conference held an hour from where I lived at the time. "Why not?" I thought.<br />
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On a warm, sunny day in April, a vehicle pulled up to a loading dock outside of my university and Don Duszynski met with me for the first time in person after almost a year of e-mails. With him was Dr. George Cain, with whom I quickly bonded over a love for acting and German sausage. (Yeah, we stopped at Fischer's Meat Market in Muenster, Texas on the way...)<br />
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After an hour, we arrived at the conference. I remember liking the food, though I can't really remember what exactly I ate that night. Then I stayed up talking and meeting all sorts of new people until the wee hours of the morning. The next day was filled with talks about an amazing array of different parasites. The evening brought a fancy spread of cheeses and a great diversity of wine to enjoy while checking out all of the awesome parasite posters. Later came the business meeting, which marked my first attendance at such a thing. It was again followed by making new friends and conversing with people passionate about parasites until 2 or 3 in the morning.<br />
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The last day ended after a few more talks and I left knowing that my application to the University of Texas-Arlington didn't matter anymore. I had been converted from an aspiring herpetologist to an aspiring parasitologist.<br />
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It was at that very meeting where I met my now-major professor, Dr. Karl Reinhard, and began thinking about archaeoparasitology as more than just a long, fancy word. I also met others who would go on to serve as members of my committee, Dr. Scott Gardner and Dr. John Janovy.<br />
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A year later, when I attended the meeting for the second time, I drove to the conference on my own and had a similarly awesome experience. By that time I had officially been accepted into UNL and would be beginning my PhD program the following fall.<br />
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After graduating, getting married, moving to a new state, and beginning my PhD work, it became difficult to focus on finishing the monograph. My co-author's life was equally (if not more so) busy at the time, so we each worked when we could on what we could. After almost four years (almost halfway through my PhD program at this point) we finally managed to pull everything together. I began working on figures and discussion paragraphs that would see numerous (necessary) edits from my co-author. We decided to go with Elsevier as our publisher and the "monograph" became a "book". Before I knew it, I was getting a contract in the mail and scouring each line. My co-author, a man who has written many such books, called me to discuss the contract in detail. It was an incredible learning experience for which I will be eternally grateful.<br />
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Just before the final proofs came in, my adviser encouraged me to tell our department about my accomplishment. I wasn't really sure about how to go about "professional bragging", but I did know that this book was going to be important for me to publicize. I asked Patty Swanson, the woman who knows all things (or more precisely one of the many women who know all things in our department...we have great people!), and she put me in touch with our communications associate, Mekita Rivás. I had a wonderful interview with Mekita and she took a few pictures of me next to my favorite microscope (a.k.a. <i>The Beauty</i>). Later, I read the excellent article she wrote for our departmental newsletter. A few friends subsequently posted links to the article on Facebook, which was pretty cool! A week or so later I saw a link to my article pop up on my newsfeed. Thinking it was a little odd, I scrolled back up to find that the story had been picked up by UNL Today and there was my face right on the university's webpage! (<a href="http://news.unl.edu/newsrooms/unltoday/article/student-co-authors-monograph-details-turtle-parasites-worldwide/" target="_blank">Here's a link</a>, if you are interested.)<br />
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It was shortly after the interview that we transitioned from calling our work a <i>monograph</i> to calling it a <i>book</i>. (Also, in case you didn't notice, the computer screen behind me is showing a beautiful <i>Ascaris</i> egg from a Lithuanian mummy rather than a coccidian....then again, I'm sure you already knew that!) Later that day I had professors in two of my classes mention that they had seen my article. My Portuguese instructor said I was "famous"...and I certainly felt like a rock star that day!<br />
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By mid-summer we had the cover worked out...I posted a copy of it on the bulletin board in the dining hall of the station where I worked. I had a few people express interest and a few congratulate me even though the book wasn't quite finished yet. I was amazed at the support from faculty and students that seemed to be surrounding me. Don't get me wrong, I certainly felt that the book was important, but I was overwhelmed by the number of other people who actually recognized its importance. (There's more parasitophiles out there than I sometimes realize!)<br />
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Just before I left the country to do field work in Brazil for the better part of a month, the final proofs were submitted. Once I returned home it was only a matter of days before I realized that it was official. It really was finished. I Googled "Morrow Coccidia" and the first thing that popped up was it. The realization that it had ACTUALLY HAPPENED hit me all at once. I was beyond elated to be able to officially, after all of these years, be able to call myself a real scientist (because real scientists publish) and a real author (...which also have to publish to be real, right?)<br />
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It would be several more weeks before my author copies would make their way to my mailbox. I checked everyday (sometimes twice a day out of overzealous anticipation) hoping to find a package with my three copies. They finally arrived while I was out of town for a parasite conference (go figure?!) and my wonderful husband texted me to announce their arrival mere hours after my professor and I had left town. They were the first thing on my mind once I was back home. I already knew where the copies would be going. The first one I opened to page #17 and drew a circle around the page number in sharpie. This was <i>my</i> copy. The second I placed on a shelf to await its new owner. My parents' copy was secured until their arrival this November. I opened the third copy and took out my nice pen. In the open space on the first page I wrote "To the Harold Manter Lab of Parasitology" and then a short message followed by my autograph. Hehe...autograph....that's too cool! :)<br />
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And now you know the whole story...or at least my part in the story. I am beholden to Dr. Don Duszynski for taking me, an unheard of graduate student from a tiny university, and teaching me all about writing, editing, editing, and more editing, contract negotiation, cover design, and publishing. It was an honor to work with him as both a friend and a colleague long before I began to build a professional name for myself.<br />
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I am beyond humbled by the outpouring of support from my friends, family, and colleagues. I'd especially like to take a moment to thank my close friends who maintained our friendship even when I was too caught up in working on this book to go out for a drink and to those who brought me tea while I sat immersed in a blanket of solitude tapping away at the keyboard. More than anyone, I want to thank my husband for putting up with me when I was stressed or distant in my zone of concentration and for being the most encouraging, reassuring, and inspiring spouse there ever was. (Seriously Love, this would have been tough without you! And also thanks for being my photographer...pictures below!)<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Note the awesome "Parasitophile" shirt from this year's <br />Rocky Mountain Conference of Parasitologists. <br />(I <i>may</i> have had an influence in designing this shirt...)</span></div>
JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-78978908136272397362014-09-08T20:02:00.001-07:002014-09-08T20:08:33.852-07:00A Weekend in Western Nebraska: Attending the Rocky Mountain Conference of ParasitologistsThursday, Friday, and Saturday of last weekend was a blur of exciting presentations, reunions, new friends, and amazing food. I'm talking, of course, about the recent convening of the Rocky Mountain Conference of Parasitologists (RMCP) held at the Cedar Point Biological Station (CPBS) just outside of Ogallala. This year's conference was small, both in terms of membership and in number of presentations/posters, but it was still a good meeting. Below are the highlights, at least from my perspective.<br />
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<b>Thursday</b></div>
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My major professor and I taught the morning's classes and left for RMCP around 1pm. We grabbed Starbucks on the way out and I ate lunch on the road. The four hour drive was filled with wonderful conversations about the semester that lies ahead and with the words of Mitch Albom's <i>The Five People You Meet in Heaven </i>emitted by the CD player of his blue Baja. We grabbed more coffee at our favorite little place in Gothenburg before hitting the last stretch of road to the station.</div>
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We were surprised to discover that we were among the first people to arrive for the conference. I took my things to the room where I already knew I was staying and went to see the kitchen staff while my professor got settled in to his cabin. The familiar smell of awesome emanated from the kitchen as soon as I stepped into the dining hall. I was greeted by the smiling faces of two close friends and we chatted until they had to put out the hors d'oeuvres. It is traditional to serve hors d'oeurvres rather than dinner at this conference unlike the other annual conference I attend. I suppose that's due to the later arrival of most attendees. The hors d'oeuvres this year were spectacular. I walked up to the serving bar to see an array of fancy crackers and white cheeses surrounding plump, green grapes. To the right of this was a tray of caprese...little bits of mozzerella, tomato, and a basil leaf skewered on a toothpick and drizzled with balsamic vinegar. Just to the other side of that was a hot pan of Italian meatballs with warm smokes still rising from the freshly cooked delicacies. On an adjacent table lay a round tray of dark chocolate-dipped strawberries. To the left of the strawberries were small gingersnap cookies with vanilla frosting drizzled delicately over them in a zig-zag pattern. As I look at the spread before me, I knew that this was destined to be an awesome weekend! (I apologize in advance for my lack of food-porn from all of the meals this weekend...I will, however, flood you later with pictures of a particularly special dessert!)</div>
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<b>Friday</b></div>
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The next morning came early. Breakfast was served at 7am and consisted of sausage, eggs, fruit, pineapple and coconut oatmeal, and peaches and cream french toast. The presentations began at 9am with four excellent graduate students (myself included) delivering their research to an eager and fully-awake audience. My own talk (which you can find <a href="https://www.academia.edu/8245447/Parasitology_in_an_Archaeological_Context_Analysis_of_Medieval_Burials_in_Nivelles_Belgium" target="_blank">here </a>if you so choose) concluded with a long string of questions and was followed by a break during which we got cookies, veggies and hummus, crackers with cheese, and fruit to go with our coffee and/or tea. The next round of talks were comprised of two undergraduate student presentations, one of which had some beautiful SEM and TEM photos. By the time these had finished, it was near noon. Lunch was comprised of beef or veggie enchiladas, cabalcitas, and a freshly made pineapple and black bean salsa. This was, of course, offered with tortilla chips and a diverse salad bar. For dessert, the staff prepared root beer floats and I couldn't stop myself from indulging.</div>
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Lunch was followed by a memorial faculty presentation given by my professor (who was also this year's president) who spoke at great length on the subject of archaeoparastology as a discipline. I was super excited about this topic for lots of reasons, but it was amazing to see how entranced the crowd was (well, save for a few parasitologists who were ready to move on to the social hour, it seems) despite his accidental time slot overshoot. Upon learning of his overshoot, my professor had been embarrassed as he hadn't realized he had gone over time. It makes me smile that he was so passionate about his work and so excited to tell others about it that he lost track of time. In talking with other students, we all agreed that we aspire for such passion in our own work as we grow into professionals.</div>
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After another break with yummy snacks, we returned to the basement of the lodge for another session of shorter faculty presentations. These were obviously excellent in both their construction and in their content. These presentations were followed by the student poster session held in the adjacent building. There were only three posters, all of them graduate students. My own poster was among them, taking up the least space on the wall, but clade with beautiful photos of <i>Ascaris lumbricoides</i> eggs, malformed <i>Trichuris trichiura</i> eggs, and the lower half of a mummy. (If you are interested, you can get a pdf of the poster <a href="https://www.academia.edu/8172357/Taphonomic_considerations_of_a_whipworm_infection_in_a_mummy_from_the_Dominican_Church_of_the_Holy_Spirit_Vilnius_Lithuania" target="_blank">here</a>.)</div>
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A banquet dinner was served after the poster session. The tables were set with real wine glasses at every center and heavy porcelain plates were waiting to be filled with shrimp scampi (or a vegetarian version...I guess that's just called "scampi"?), a melt-in-your-mouth garlic cheddar biscuit (or 5), and the ever-present salad bar assemblage. It was, however, the dessert that stole the show. Our amazing kitchen manager (/my best friend from college) created chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. On top of each one was a hand-pipped parasite silhouette made of dark chocolate. They where adorable and perfect. Lots of photos of this perfection follow. </div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Parasitophiles, feel free to nerd out right now...</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I am hookworm, hear me...Rawr! <br />Also...so cute! </i></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Oh no! We are almost out of cupcakes!!! What do we do???</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Oh good! Airicca saves the day with more cupcakes!</i></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-large;">Protozoan love! </span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Okay, so it turned out upside down in the photo, but <br />the one on the left was my cupcake...I <3 </span><i style="font-size: x-large;">Giardia</i><span style="font-size: large;">!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i> Karl grabbed a tick! And then, he ate it.</i></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjngJWWZbv2Ry5SjkR9wNmJDUQhyphenhyphenduM8bZmUrXkJ1BYBTOVi3oCYaBhhMNmontGc3aoSD4d03uXLpYOP_n9eRYfW6unLDhjFCnQXs-R8ZWz0-Shcur5x58b9lYlfKwQRmcYreFVoXX3Q0U/s1600/Photo+Sep+05,+7+39+43+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjngJWWZbv2Ry5SjkR9wNmJDUQhyphenhyphenduM8bZmUrXkJ1BYBTOVi3oCYaBhhMNmontGc3aoSD4d03uXLpYOP_n9eRYfW6unLDhjFCnQXs-R8ZWz0-Shcur5x58b9lYlfKwQRmcYreFVoXX3Q0U/s1600/Photo+Sep+05,+7+39+43+PM.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyw4EjF_vgkeAjNi7rF7SbZJwPcJ3x9uUkq_t9mLnzIskcIAJ2U_XI8nMT6kZRD5bqIGrJiQl_UqnLO0UxFs5NRgRGGfcKEAhxDEbmVl7bfifGMc2i5u5oEvaLfuCO_7Eb5b5MGxiMv28/s1600/Photo+Sep+05,+7+39+50+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyw4EjF_vgkeAjNi7rF7SbZJwPcJ3x9uUkq_t9mLnzIskcIAJ2U_XI8nMT6kZRD5bqIGrJiQl_UqnLO0UxFs5NRgRGGfcKEAhxDEbmVl7bfifGMc2i5u5oEvaLfuCO_7Eb5b5MGxiMv28/s1600/Photo+Sep+05,+7+39+50+PM.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i> Another great tick shot next to an elegant little cercaria. </i></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNFtKhzuJYI7cb05ipjwnpIbrKTh2ge9DKve1fDUYumvBwVXAqa20vlt9apYvakokT8LQkhQVVE0_w6Ic_4xX2Mo-2oVGVG4DfPFUzO_-GUVN_taDKXW5vunc6FeUCSHUjIrWsWyqM8T4/s1600/Photo+Sep+05,+7+39+55+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNFtKhzuJYI7cb05ipjwnpIbrKTh2ge9DKve1fDUYumvBwVXAqa20vlt9apYvakokT8LQkhQVVE0_w6Ic_4xX2Mo-2oVGVG4DfPFUzO_-GUVN_taDKXW5vunc6FeUCSHUjIrWsWyqM8T4/s1600/Photo+Sep+05,+7+39+55+PM.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>How many can you name?</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">(<u>Left to right, top to bottom</u>: tick, <i>Trichinella</i> nurse cell, <i>Plasmodium</i> in cell, <i>Trichinella</i> nurse cell, small worm [nematode], </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Plasmodium</i> in cell, hookworm's bucal cavity, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">cercaria, top-view of <i>Schistosoma</i> egg, <br />small worm [nematode], <i>Giardia</i>, <i>Demodex</i> (follicle mite), <br />cercaria, <i>Schistosoma</i> egg, mystery top-view.)</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Hey look!!! Coccidia!!! Oh, yeah...and other stuff too.</span></i></div>
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After dinner, I took my wine glass with me to the basement for the last presentation of the day. This was the second memorial faculty lecture given by a woman who studies the genetic histories of elasmobranch (that's sharks, skates, and rays, if you were wondering) tapeworms. If you've never looked at marine cestodes (tapeworms), google them. Right now. Go on. I'll wait.</div>
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Okay...now that you're back...aren't they just amazingly beautiful and complex?! If I wasn't already enamored by archaeoparasitology, I would be looking for any way possible to get into studying these little guys. I mean, WOW! Seriously, I am more and more amazed by them every time I sit through a presentation on this topic. After the presentation came the social hour (or a few) in which we conversed the night away while munching on the vestiges of the day's meals lovingly left out for us late-night snackers. It was a great night filled with great discussions with great people. :)</div>
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<b>Saturday</b></div>
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The final day of the conference began early again with a breakfast bar presenting sausage, eggs, blueberries and peaches oatmeal, fruit, and pumpkin french toast. There would be only a single faculty presentation after breakfast, but I was especially excited for it. The topic covered a recent range extension of a coccidian parasite in Eastern box turtles. I was especially excited for this one because I recently co-authored a book about turtle coccidia (find it <a href="http://store.elsevier.com/The-Biology-and-Identification-of-the-Coccidia-Apicomplexa-of-Turtles-of-the-World/Donald-Duszynski/isbn-9780128013670/" target="_blank">here</a>) that was finally published last month. (After only 4 years of work! :p) The presenter unexpectedly volunteered me to help answer questions after his talk and even motioned for me to stand up. I did not stand, however, not because I didn't want to, but because I didn't want to do so during the applause he had earned for his presentation and it would have just been weird to stand after everyone stopped, forcing them to question whether they should begin clapping again. As you would expect, he didn't really need my help in answering questions, but I did add in a few additional comments to some of the questions after he was finished talking.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Book at the Sod House Museum<br />
Look! It's by John Carter!</td></tr>
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Next, it was upstairs for our last round of snacks and to get prepared for our business meeting. The meeting was quicker than usual. Awards were given out, nominations turned to new officer positions, and the proceedings of past and future meetings were discussed. The meeting concluded with a passing of the gavel from the president and the president-elect. This was ceremoniously passed to the tune of actual bagpipes. This ceremony may or may not have included the skipping of the two presidents down the aisle and back. ;) It was glorious.</div>
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With the meeting adjourned, we all loaded up our vehicles and headed out. Some grabbed lunches on the way, while others at the last CPBS lunch of sandwiches and left-over snacks. My professor and I headed back to our Gothenburg coffee shop and made a stop in at the adjacent Sod House Museum before the long drive back home. We spoke of the conference and of future projects for a while, and then we attempted to finish our audiobook. </div>
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b></div>
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As you've already read, the conference was a good one....and the food rocked! I'll leave you with this little haiku I wrote for the business meeting, but didn't get a chance to share:</div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-large;">Parasites abound</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-large;">Happy faces everywhere</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-large;">So much love is here</span></i></div>
JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-29167560013862121642014-08-31T09:01:00.004-07:002014-08-31T09:03:20.123-07:00Cordyceps Fungi: Bringers of Death, Givers of Life<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Cordyceps</i> sp. growing<br />
from a lepidopteran</td></tr>
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Today, I'm going to stretch your parasitophilia into a realm it has seldom explored. Today, we will look at a genus full of fungal parasites! First and foremost, if you don't know much about fungi, especially parasitic fungi, you should take some time to read up on them because they are really fascinating organisms. Like something straight out of science fiction, parasitic fungi are capable of everything from mind control to mummification. Such feats are unimaginable to the non-mycophiliac, but don't worry...I'll convert you! ;)<br />
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For this blogpost, we will look specifically at one of my favorite genera of parasitic fungi, the genus <i>Cordyceps</i>. The name for this genus comes Latin root words meaning "club" and "head", which relate to the characteristic shape of the fungi's fruiting bodies (i.e. "mushrooms"). Although <i>Cordyceps</i> spp. can be found in lots of places, the majority of species are described from Asia as the fungi prefer humid environments like tropical forests. There are approximately 400 species within this genus that can be found all over the world. All of these species (as far as I know) are parasitic. Most species parasitize insects or other arthropods, but some feed on other fungi. These fungi, like all fungi, produce mycelia (mats of fungal structures called "hyphae", which are kind of like super-awesome roots...they are used for nutrition absorption and help to anchor the fungi), however, unlike other fungi the mycelia from these fungi invade and eventually replace host tissues. The replacement of the host tissues with <i>Cordyceps</i> mycelia effectively mummifies the host and feeds the fungus in the process so that it can produce fruiting bodies, which will then produce reproductive spores by the thousands.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7EGKrqD0rhhUVmdVr7-BI5mOfUC30ZWESLbqcaef1z2gXYrMxluXnXN_ooaGcJm0Uf_qnfbimIdxa6gvgWy2YPH9VMk1Npm4kcX_DCulEfajp28-shIqEzSkbthZiRpdrcBmKGPWNu4/s1600/cordyceps.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7EGKrqD0rhhUVmdVr7-BI5mOfUC30ZWESLbqcaef1z2gXYrMxluXnXN_ooaGcJm0Uf_qnfbimIdxa6gvgWy2YPH9VMk1Npm4kcX_DCulEfajp28-shIqEzSkbthZiRpdrcBmKGPWNu4/s1600/cordyceps.jpg" height="270" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look! A photo of a <i>Cordyceps</i> sp. taken at UNL!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTnQ4f00z1QmCy9BvMNSE__s_VNaYUqRDF5tbVoTU6Yu0qAY58okJU_UDzvfXf0lf_SwAoGSjfRsGGDr8CKt_DaisVABTa6zWNNsJ95cEoyJOv0ELYYas_ohVGdD1hnWzMvk4BFpIjstw/s1600/paras___parasect_by_mrredbutcher-d7bko07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTnQ4f00z1QmCy9BvMNSE__s_VNaYUqRDF5tbVoTU6Yu0qAY58okJU_UDzvfXf0lf_SwAoGSjfRsGGDr8CKt_DaisVABTa6zWNNsJ95cEoyJOv0ELYYas_ohVGdD1hnWzMvk4BFpIjstw/s1600/paras___parasect_by_mrredbutcher-d7bko07.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paras and Parasect</td></tr>
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<i>Cordyceps</i> fungi have gained pop culture popularity for their creepiness. Even the gaming industry has picked up on how sci-fi-esque these little guys can be. For example, think back to your childhood and consider the Pokemon character, Paras. Paras starts as this crab-like creature with two mushrooms on its back. It evolves into Parasect once it reaches level 24. At this point, the fungus takes over the arthropod and the animal's eyes become milky-white in submission. The parasitic fungus induces the animals to live in caves and other dark, moist environments so that the fungus can grow. Swarms of Parasects can devour trees for nutrients. These have GOT to be inspired by <i>Cordyceps</i>, though I'm not aware of any directly-stated connections. Some games are less subtle; part of the plotline in the video game <i>The Last of Us</i> centered around a mutated strain of <i>Cordyceps</i> that turned people into zombie-like creatures. (Sounds right up my alley, huh?) Additionally, these fungi have made their way into some amazing artwork.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG-nblNYOMDLcAakpngff0dWisDRfwqF0neua5PnhQvwgcZ4PvhYSMPHhxtespizX_DGxWsO4d5h6TLBVBETr0ypGSGGsqXpyfFipAWaNchkyR41SMlFSv2yILF0Ws7U2mAOe-hFDqERQ/s1600/cordyceps_homo_sapiensis_by_nexusmind-d45hvqd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG-nblNYOMDLcAakpngff0dWisDRfwqF0neua5PnhQvwgcZ4PvhYSMPHhxtespizX_DGxWsO4d5h6TLBVBETr0ypGSGGsqXpyfFipAWaNchkyR41SMlFSv2yILF0Ws7U2mAOe-hFDqERQ/s1600/cordyceps_homo_sapiensis_by_nexusmind-d45hvqd.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poster from <i>The Last of Us</i><br />
featuring mutated <i>Cordyceps</i>.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A piece from DeviantArt<br />
featuring a <i>Cordyceps</i>-like fungus.</td></tr>
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Getting back to reality (oh, there goes gravity), a wide range of Asian cultures have utilized these kinds of fungi for traditional medicines. These have been used as aphrodisiacs, treatments for kidney and lung issues, and for revitalizing the fatigued elderly. Scientific researchers have even identified active compounds from these fungi that have pharmocological potential for treating cancer, liver disease, depression, and diabetes. (That's right, these things have hypoglycemic effects too...who knew?) In fact, a paper came out this past April that was titled: "Extract of <i>Cordyceps militaris</i> inhibits angiogenesis and suppresses tumor growth of human malignant melanoma cells". To translate for those of you struggling with the terminology, angiogenesis is the formation of blood vessels, which is necessary for tumor formation. This paper described how using an extract from the fungus not only slowed down angiogenesis, it also induced apoptosis (programmed cell death) in malignant melanoma cells (the bad, quickly-growing kind of melanoma). This study suggested the potential use of this fungus in the treatment of solid, cancerous tumors for its potent effectiveness. Aside from this, there have been a number of other studies looking to various <i>Cordyceps</i> species for their anti-cancer properties, but why stop there? It turns out that members of this genus also have anti-inflammatory properties, antioxidants, anti-fibrotic bioactivity, and even anti-trypanosomal activities! How awesome is that?!?!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDWlchnbu0xoARysLwwy3YLkVdbJdiwfTThgW8KzvGR6sBCkzh2EwZHGTqdbVXcbPlBkxm8dT-_I7wtG3ya5_HMh6-V5vDtIRjW7iIYqO4DM1cQy56F3gqOzc0hwU7ih-keUeafHDsdo/s1600/Cordyceps_Fungus_by_scythemantis.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDWlchnbu0xoARysLwwy3YLkVdbJdiwfTThgW8KzvGR6sBCkzh2EwZHGTqdbVXcbPlBkxm8dT-_I7wtG3ya5_HMh6-V5vDtIRjW7iIYqO4DM1cQy56F3gqOzc0hwU7ih-keUeafHDsdo/s1600/Cordyceps_Fungus_by_scythemantis.png" height="189" width="200" /></a><b>The Moral of the Story</b></div>
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As most things in nature, <i>Cordyceps</i> has two sides...that of the villain and that of the hero. Their excitedly terrifying capabilities to suck their hosts dry to the point of becoming mummified cases of their former selves makes them the perfect organisms for science fiction stories. Their medicinal properties bring the potential for life and a sense of hope to those suffering from a wide variety of illnesses. Yes, the <i>Cordyceps</i> fungi exist as the duality of life and death, hope and despair, love and fear. It's a group of parasitic fungi worthy of reverence and deserving of our admiration.</div>
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Also, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuKjBIBBAL8" target="_blank">here's a link</a> to a sweet <i>Cordyceps</i> video clip from the BBC narrated by none other than David Attenborough. Enjoy! :)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm not going to tell him....</td></tr>
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JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-43372636550814207422014-08-24T14:15:00.001-07:002014-08-24T14:15:59.800-07:00Ticks That Make You Sick: Ixodida-Induced Vegetarianism <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Greetings fellow parasitophiles! I'm sorry that I've been out of the loop for so long. I have a million excuses for not writing...teaching, book publishing, revising to two different manuscripts for scientific publication, traveling to another country to work on an excavation site, moving into a new home, preparing for the fall semester...but none of these are good ones. As you can probably tell, life's been more than a little crazy for me this summer! All of my lame excuses aside, today I'm jumping back on the horse to blog about parasites. Let's start with something most of us have had to deal with at some point...<i>ticks</i>.</div>
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Between field work, camping, hiking, and lots of other types of outdoor activities, most people have encountered these little ectoparasites. These menacing little creatures strike fear, disgust, and anger into the hearts of all those who enjoy the great outdoors. A great variety of species exist, but only a handful carry diseases that we have to worry about. Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Lyme Disease, Ehrlichiosis, and others are problematic here in the states. It would be easy to pick one of these diseases to discuss at great length here on Parasitophilia, but I have something a little different in mind for today. Today, we won't talk about an infectious disease at all. Today, we will discuss something else that can come from being bitten by ticks....something I never thought could be associated with ticks...an acquired food allergy...to red meat.<br />
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<a href="http://www.familyallergyasthmacare.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Meat-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.familyallergyasthmacare.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Meat-1.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a>I only just heard of this acquired allergy within the last few weeks, but the research goes back several years. The oldest paper that I could find on the subject (doing only a quick search, not an in-depth one) was published in 2009. This paper described 25 patients in New South Wales who developed allergies to red meat after suffering from reactions to local tick bites. The authors suggested what <i>may </i>have been the first documented association between tick bites and food sensitivities.<br />
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Fast-forward to a year ago (2013). A paper was released describing an oligosaccharide known as galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose (here-after referred to as "alpha-gal") having a connection to red meat allergy. You see, alpha-gal is only produced by non-primate mammals and by New World monkeys. Humans, other primates, and Old World monkeys produce an IgG antibody that works against alpha-gal. Alpha-gal is produced heavily in animals with lots of red meat...such as bovines, sheep, and pigs. The allergic response to red meat experienced by patients with red meat allergies is mediated, like most other allergic responses, by IgE.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The Lone Star Tick</i></td></tr>
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There is strong evidence to support the involvement of various arthropods in the development of red meat allergies, however, the mechanisms have yet to be completely worked out and at this point causation has not been fully established between red meat allergy development and tick bites. So far, scientists have been able to establish that IgE antibodies to alpha-gal are specific to regions where tick bites are common problems. In particular, epidemiological evidence has focused around <i>Amblyomma americanum</i>, the lone star tick. Researchers have also found correlations between IgE antibodies that are specific for both proteins from ticks and for alpha-gal. This means that humans may be producing alpha-gal IgE in response to tick bites, which may, in turn, be associated with red meat allergic responses.<br />
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Another paper published this year (2014) describes a case of a patient suffering from problems for 4 years who was finally diagnosed with a red meat allergy based on IgE Ab alpha-gal titers. This study, along with previous studies from both the US and Europe strongly support the notion that tick bites have the potential to alter our immune systems in such a way as to elicit anaphylactic responses after the ingestion of red meat.<br />
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Interestingly, ticks aren't the only arthropods demonstrated to cause changes in alpha-gal antibody production. It appears that people with Chagas' disease and with Leishmania also have significant increases in serum titers of these antibodies. Both of these diseases are vectored by arthropods (kissing bugs and sandflies respectively).<br />
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As with many immunological studies, the answers to the questions how and why are far from straightforward. Much work is yet to be conducted regarding the relationship between ticks, alpha-gal, IgE, and red meat allergies. With enough time and effort, perhaps we will be able to elucidate the intricacies of these interactions so that people afflicted by these allergies will be able to eat red meat once more. In the meantime, we will continue to study this bizarre reaction and attempt to better understand its origins so that we can learn how to offset its effects.<br />
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<br />JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-18207256904557327842014-04-13T09:59:00.001-07:002014-04-13T09:59:52.740-07:00Annual Southwestern Association of Parasitologists Meeting-2014I stare out of the back window as the vehicle pulls away
from the parking lot in front of the field station where we have learned and
experienced so much in such a short amount of time. Even after four years of
coming to this meeting, I still leave feeling amazed by the whole experience as we leave. I
was really stressed out coming down to this meeting this year because it takes place in
April, one of the busiest months of the academic year. This April has been
particularly hell-ish for me because I’m taking several classes, preparing for
what will be a very active summer, working on papers, waiting to hear back
about submissions to two different journals, thinking about grant writing, and
preparing for this meeting. I bit off a big chunk (as I tend to do sometimes)
by taking on the challenge of presenting three talks for this conference.
Luckily it proved to not be more than I could chew after all. All of my
presentations went well, I feel like I answered questions well, and I even had
a few people catch me later on ask more about some of the work that I’ve done
in the last year! It made me kind of feel like a rockstar for a few minutes,
which was awesome! But enough about me…let’s talk about the conference!<br />
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We arrived Thursday night and were greeted by smiling,
familiar faces. After unloading our things, checking in, and getting to our
rooms, we were able to catch up with many of our colleagues. It is still
amazing to be able to talk to giants in the field of parasitology about
everything from specific nuances of vastly understudied groups of parasites to
big-picture issues like the impacts of climate change on parasite biodiversity.
Equally amazing is discussing these same sorts of topics with other budding
parasitologists. </div>
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The next day was packed to the gills with parasite talks.
Literally. We had a LOT of people presenting their work on the parasites of
fish this year. Big fish. Little fish. Freshwater. Marine. Everything from life
cycle work, to heavy metal bioaccumulation was covered this year. I think we
could definitely call this the “Year of the Fish” if we so wanted. There were
also several talks on birds: ducks, quail, and turkeys for the most part. There
were a handful of talks on anurans (frogs, specifically) and several small
mammal parasite surveys. There were even a few talks on pathogenic amoebae that
are starting to be studied in Oklahoma. Then of course there were many talks on
parasites that utilize invertebrate hosts, such as gregarines and nematamorphs. (There was also a pretty nice talk on turtle coccidia and a couple of interesting archaeoparasitology talks if I do say so myself. :p)</div>
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After the talks and eating dinner, the society held their
business meeting where we discussed several important issues that are emerging
in our field. Student awards were given out for the presentations and for
research proposals submitted prior to the conference. I was fortunate enough to
receive a student research grant this year, which will help to fund some of my
dissertation research! The meeting concluded with everyone’s favorite part…the
resolutions committee’s hilarious recap of the meeting’s events. The people who
get together to write the resolution every year have great senses of humor and
I think I’m certainly not alone in saying that this is the best way
to end a business meeting!</div>
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Next we had yummy cheeses on fancy crackers whilst we sipped
wine and made our rounds to check out all of the posters for the year. Like the
talks, there was a lot of diversity in topics, with several of the posters
pertaining to fish. We drank, chatted, and reminisced the night away before
collapsing in our beds to grasp a few remaining hours of sleep prior to the next day's talks
that were scheduled to begin at 8am the following morning.</div>
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Arising with tired, but eager eyes, I had a quick breakfast
supplemented by a big cup of coffee that I carried to the library for the last
few talks. These non-competitive presentations were exciting and interesting
just as those the day before had been. We sang Johnny Cash ditties at the
request of a marine fish parasitologist talking about a group of parasites that
have “been everywhere…man”, including in the “ring of fire”. We also heard
about ticks, cryptic parasite species in eels, an elusive life cycle of a
freshwater fish parasite, a great new repository for
parasites, and about how “sexy” bobcat parasites can be…but only if you
properly deposit your specimens in a museum collection.</div>
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Unfortunately, we had a long drive ahead of us, so we had to
load up quickly and take off. I didn’t get a chance for proper goodbyes with
most of the wonderful people that I’ve met over the years or for the first time
this year. I suppose we have Facebook though, so that makes our goodbyes seem
unneeded as we will hopefully interact before the next meeting via social
media. Such a great time, but soon it will be back to the end of the semester
grind. I think this meeting may have been what I needed to pick up some
motivation to get through the next few weeks so that we can stick a fork in
this spring semester and call it done. So long, SWAP! (And thanks for all the
fish!)</div>
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JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-21464483510432832512014-01-31T23:20:00.005-08:002014-01-31T23:21:57.853-08:00Tricks of the Trypanosomes: Outsmarting the Human Immune SystemFor those who don't already know, I'm currently taking a class titled "molecular genetics". This may not be shocking to those who know that I'm a biologist, but those who know me well know that I'm an *organismal* biologist. I learned the basics of genetics as an undergrad, but I've done zero work on the molecular level. To say the least I've been a bit nervous about taking this course. Luckily, I've got an excellent professor and a better memory for the subject than I typically give myself credit for. I feel like I'm understanding things fairly well, but I'm not going to let myself get too confident just yet. Last week I was reading one of the chapters and to my utter delight my eyes scanned the word "trypanosome". What? Go back! Read that again! And there it was again, <i>trypanosome</i>...I was intrigued.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn5WdTjF5g0OaP6NbcnNB5b35KvZvDx3qxdj8brCrWK427GFSA3b6HdGBzAmZccT73OdXBmUofAfowdFu2sH1llg5rJW-O0RNoOE7G_zew5TUSqLWSh7t5shJrfDBNEGYcEf8QGeexyyY/s1600/3.1.5_protozoa_3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn5WdTjF5g0OaP6NbcnNB5b35KvZvDx3qxdj8brCrWK427GFSA3b6HdGBzAmZccT73OdXBmUofAfowdFu2sH1llg5rJW-O0RNoOE7G_zew5TUSqLWSh7t5shJrfDBNEGYcEf8QGeexyyY/s1600/3.1.5_protozoa_3.png" height="209" width="320" /></a>The chapter I was reading was about RNA splicing and it turns out that these little guys have a unique way of splicing. Before I get too far into the depths of this amazing phenomenon and the broader implications of this ability, let's review a bit for those who need it. First of all, DNA holds the blueprints for creating things like proteins. Protein codes need to find their way from the nucleus to the ribosomes, which are the little factories that make the proteins. Enter messenger RNA or "mRNA", the Kinkos and FedEx of the cell. First, a RNA polymerase (think of this as the Xerox) binds to a gene with the help of transcription factors to specific locations known as the promoter sequences. The polymerase then makes a complementary copy of whatever gene it is bound to in the form of an mRNA. This mRNA is not an exact copy of the gene, think of it more like a negative of a photo that can be used to create proteins later. As the mRNA forms according to the DNA template, it copies more than strictly what is needed to make the desired proteins. The initial mRNA strand (called a "pre-mRNA") contains both sequences relative to protein coding ("exons") and sequences that do not code for proteins ("introns"). Obviously, the mRNA doesn't need the introns and mRNA is kind of a no-nonsense sort of guy, so he needs to get rid of them. How do you get rid of sequences that are interspersed throughout a strip of sequences? You cut and paste, of course! Through a series of complex chemical and enzymatic reactions, the pre-mRNAs are cut apart or "spliced" and then the relevant bits of sequences are fused together to form the mRNA. This mRNA will then be prepared for transport out of the nucleus, through the cytoplasm, and into the ribosomes, where they will be utilized for the creation of proteins needed for the cell.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd5EFwDc5phrHE62ZV6KRNnUOlXWeKz6a6mLWFVD7KxYo8_gcaYOXVwvRiFOAGwoeJ1KNdH9c-PM6ivXNrn9r-m4FjP2VmAUzLNwLmNtrfZcLTsC1qOEcAwn0IwNSw3CEed2j3B6FrqAg/s1600/tumblr_inline_my0qr2NEx51re9xx0.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd5EFwDc5phrHE62ZV6KRNnUOlXWeKz6a6mLWFVD7KxYo8_gcaYOXVwvRiFOAGwoeJ1KNdH9c-PM6ivXNrn9r-m4FjP2VmAUzLNwLmNtrfZcLTsC1qOEcAwn0IwNSw3CEed2j3B6FrqAg/s1600/tumblr_inline_my0qr2NEx51re9xx0.gif" height="200" width="196" /></a>There are many more details to the process described in the previous paragraph...believe me, I had to know the mechanisms for a test a few days ago....but that should be all that you need to know to follow the next bit.<br />
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Let's look back at splicing. In most eukaryotes, the pre-mRNA can either be spliced to create a particular protein, or in some cases can be spliced in different ways to create multiple different types of proteins (we call this last ability "alternative splicing"). Trypanosomes do things differently. In a very Frankensteiny fashion that I find sort of appropriate for the parasite with links to zombie legends, trypanosomes actually splice <i>different</i> pre-mRNAs together to form totally new proteins. This process is known as "trans-splicing" and was actually discovered in <i>Trypanosoma brucei </i>They do this as part of a way to trick their hosts' immune systems. You see, trypanosomes wear this strange little coat made of VSG (variable surface glycoproteins). To WAY over-simplify this, the surface of coat changes depending on the proteins produced after trans-splicing.<br />
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Interestingly, trans-splicing has now also been found to occur within both <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i> and <i>Caenorhabditis elegans</i>, which are genetic model organisms (a fruit fly and a nematode respectively), and within two other types of parasites. The other parasites include schistosomes (blood flukes) and <i>Ascaris lumbricoides</i> (giant intestinal roundworms or "maw worms"). As in trypanosomes, these parasites utilize trans-splicing to help them evade their hosts' immune systems.<br />
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Because these parasites have the ability to create seemingly infinite combinations of exons to devise new and different proteins, it is rather difficult to develop vaccines. Vaccines work by giving you a little bit of exposure to disease agents so that your body can develop antibodies to fight off these little infections. By doing so, your body now knows how to fight the same infection if it comes back for another go at you. With your newly acquired arsenal, you are able to vanquish these invaders should they ever attempt a hostile corporeal-take-over. Your body's ability to mobilize effective antibodies is dependent on being able to recognize a returning pathogen as being such. If the same pathogen that you've previously encountered comes in wearing a different coat, then the antibodies you've already made against that pathogen may not recognize that there is a threat they are capable of suppressing. Thus, if an organism is able to continuously change its surface protein structures using trans-splicing, it can successfully outsmart the human immune system repeatedly. Especially since we can't get a handle on how to induce our bodies to make antibodies that can see through the parasites' clever disguises. (*Side Note*: They do have a handle on how to vaccinate against schistosomes now, but on-going human trials have yet to reveal just how effective this new SM-14 vaccine is.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A model of the VSG</td></tr>
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When it comes to trypanosomes, the human body isn't totally defenseless without a vaccine. I was ecstatic to learn that human bodies produce natural trypanolytic factors, which do exactly what they sound like they do. These bad boys kill trypanosomes.The machinery behind this is fascinating, but to get to the point on this blogpost, I'll spare you the details for now. So, now we have trypanosomes changing their VSG coats to fool our antibodies into being docile and we have the rogue trypanolytic factors who come in kicking like Chuck Norris to save the day. These factors protect us from a number of species of trypanosomes, though a few manage to step up their game.<br />
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African Sleeping Sickness (a.k.a. African trypanosomiasis) in humans is caused by one of two subspecies of <i>Trypanosoma brucei</i>: <i>T. b. gambiense</i> and <i>T. b. rhodesiense</i>. These parasites have evolved two distinct ways of resisting our otherwise super-awesome trypanolytic factors. Let's start with <i>T. b. gambiense</i>. This one causes about 97% of human cases of African Sleeping Sickness. Essentially, a mutation in the genes of this species allows for resistance to a major component of the trypanolytic immune response. The cool part is that this mutation is thought to have evolved alongside another parasitic protist, <i>Plasmodium</i>, which causes malaria. The malarial parasite does lots of amazing things to red blood cells, but for the sake of staying on topic, let's just mention that it causes them to burst. When red blood cells burst, they release lots of free haem, which gets bound by haptoglobin. The haptoglobin carries the lost haem out of the body. Haptoglobin is utilized during the trypanolytic defense and without it the Chuck Norris-like factors are much less efficient. Thus, malaria may have given <i>T. b. gambiense</i> the evolutionary hand up it needed to develop a resistance to some of our trypanolytic factors.<br />
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Resistance in <i>T. b. rhodesiense</i> is different. Rather than relying on a mutation for resistance to trypanolytic factors, this parasite makes its very own anti-trypanolytic. This parasite creates a serum resistance associated protein (SRA) that binds to the trypanolytic factor in such a way that it renders the most important one completely useless.<br />
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<b>Moral of the Story</b><br />
A common theme that parasitologists encounter when looking at host-parasite interactions is<b> </b>what we call the "Red Queen Hypothesis". This reference comes from Lewis Carroll's <i>Through the Looking Glass</i>...a line from the Red Queen about doing lots of running to stay in the same place. This hypothesis describes how organisms evolve not only in response to pressure affecting reproductive success, but also in response to merely surviving the advances of their enemies. The evolutionary arms race between host and parasite typically escalates on the basis of survival and not reproduction. We see this demonstrated between humans and trypanosomes as each party develops ways of outwitting the other.<br />
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Now that we have seen a glimpse of this raging battle, we can start to ask more questions....such as how does <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>, the agent that causes Chagas' disease, evade our trypanolytic factors? How do schistosomes and ascarids use trans-splicing to evade host immune responses? and What benefit does trans-splicing serve to non-parasitic animals like fruit flies and soil nematodes? (Or do these extra genes come in handy for defense against their own parasites?...plot-twist!) So continues the circle of life as a researcher...find lots of answers to the simple question of "Why do trypanosomes need to trans-splice their RNA?" and draw more additional questions than what you draw of conclusions. Keep running parasites, we parasitophiles will be sure to eagerly stand beside and watch you do so.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just thought I'd leave this here for you...<br />
because I love you...<br />
and because it truly has no mana cost plus haste.</td></tr>
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JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-42291459854355682942014-01-19T16:11:00.003-08:002014-01-19T16:11:38.357-08:00Toxo Takes the SeaThose of you who know me know that I have a particular love/fascination with <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i>. And why shouldn't I? It's an amazingly complicated for a single-celled organism. Capable of manipulating hosts in ways worthy of gruesome science fiction, this parasite has captivated many a parasitologist. I knew that this parasite was capable of infecting a variety of hosts. It is most well-known for infecting cats, mice/rats, and humans. However, as I delve deeper into the literature for my dissertation, I'm finding that this parasite infects quite a WIDE range of hosts. While it steers clear of amphibians and reptiles, <i>Toxoplasma</i> <i>gondii</i> has been found rampantly among birds and mammals. I've started finding reports of this parasite infecting everything from rabbits to racoons, to ferrets and flying squirrels. My most current awe of this parasite came today as I scoured the literature and found that this parasite isn't restricted by the bounds of land...it has actually taken to the sea as well.<br />
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Putting the obvious correlations of this parasite to a pirate aside, let us look at what we know about <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i>'s relation to the sea. I had read previously that the parasite had been isolated from sea otters. No one really understands how the parasite could infect this kind of animal. The current theory is that feral cats are defecating near shorelines and that the parasites are being swept into the tides, where they are being picked up by a mysterious paratenic host. This mystery host is then eaten by sea otters and the parasites find a new home in their sea-dwelling host. The biggest question is what is this paratenic host? Also, if we do find the paratenic host, how can we prove that cats pooping along the shore is <i>really</i> the way that this parasite is cycling? Perhaps there is an alternative seafaring life cycle at play? I suppose we won't know until someone takes the time to find out.<br />
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People have started trying to take the time. A group of researchers made an attempt to experimentally infect bivalves (molluscs with two shells...things like clams, oysters, etc.) with <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i>. These experimental infections have proved to be successful. Thus, we have learned that bivalves have the ability to become infected and to pass the infection on to animals that eat them. However, this has not yet been demonstrated to be the case in a natural setting. I'm not sure if anyone is already working on this, but I sure hope so!<br />
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Sea otters aren't the only marine animals that have ever been infected by this crafty little parasite. It turns out that a great deal of other marine mammals have produced isolates following testing for this parasite. Many different kinds of seals have been shown to harbor the parasite, though not all of them demonstrated clinical symptoms of toxoplasmosis. This includes fur seals, elephant seals, harbor seals, and sea lions.<br />
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Of course pinnipeds can't have all the fun. Toxo has also found its way into a number of cetaceans and sea cows. It has been known to cause congenital toxoplasmosis in various species of dolphins. It's also popped up in beluga whales and a few different species of manatees. How could these animals, these exclusively marine animals, be picking up this parasite that normally goes through a cat-rat cycle?<br />
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So many questions with so few answers. We clearly have a lot to learn about the incredible adaptability of this uniquely amazing parasite. I love that every paper I read about this parasite brings up new ideas and questions that push the bounds of our understanding of something that seems so simple superficially. This is why I love this parasite. I can't wait to see what we discover next! I hope that my own research will help shed some light on the origins of this parasite...someday...JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-89983054438488343142013-12-29T13:36:00.003-08:002013-12-29T13:37:11.953-08:00A Fluke, a Tapeworm, and a Roundworm Walk into a Sushi Bar...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8XnYB2hyphenhyphen9EelQQvvDwm6JP_Rb16p8SP4YLlyRMHDnI-jKmEUv-NAPohMhNCJXuKDEz79rzJcX3johDVt3z0Cp2JqW7ShfR914wrRRCoM56d2ZxsUHBWwgSKTqeI4Jov8QQaLNNpSjJuQ/s1600/Sushi-5-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8XnYB2hyphenhyphen9EelQQvvDwm6JP_Rb16p8SP4YLlyRMHDnI-jKmEUv-NAPohMhNCJXuKDEz79rzJcX3johDVt3z0Cp2JqW7ShfR914wrRRCoM56d2ZxsUHBWwgSKTqeI4Jov8QQaLNNpSjJuQ/s320/Sushi-5-1.jpg" width="320" /></a>I know what you are thinking. You are thinking, "I can't read this blogpost because I LOVE sushi and she WILL NOT ruin it for me!" Don't worry, I'm a big fan of sushi too, and I certainly don't want to diminish the amazingness that is this Japanese delicacy. Let me start off by saying that most of the time, especially here in the U.S. or in countries with well-regulated sushi bars (such as is the case in Japan), you are not at risk for contracting parasites from eating sushi. I'll end this post with a brief discussion about raw fish regulations just to ease your troubled mind. That being said, let's talk about the parasites that you can get from eating raw fish that hasn't been properly processed.<br />
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There are many different species of parasites that use fish as one of their hosts. Any of these parasites has the potential to infect humans if accidentally eaten. You can pick up a variety of flukes, tapeworms, and roundworms from a variety of marine and freshwater fish. To keep this blogpost to a reasonable size, we will only look at one representative from each of these three groups. We will talk about the fluke <i>Clonorchis sinensis</i>, the tapeworm <i>Diphyllobothrium latum</i>, and the roundworm <i>Anisakis simplex</i>.<br />
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Because we are looking at three different worms under the theme of "can be in sushi", I won't go into the detail that I normally do. I've never blogged about <i>C. sinensis</i> or about <i>A. simplex</i>, but you can find a previous blogpost about <i>D. latum</i> <a href="http://parasitophilia.blogspot.com/2013/04/diphyllobothrium-latum.html">here</a>. (Perhaps I'll blog about the other two in later posts.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Clonorchis </i>specimens from a patient.</td></tr>
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These three parasites not only represent three different classes of organisms (and two different phyla if you are keeping up taxanomically), they also represent parasites found in different types of fish. <i>C. sinensis</i> is typically found in freshwater fish or in fish that prefer brackish waters (a mix between freshwater and marine ecosystems). This parasite is really only found in East Asia, where it utilizes a snail for its first intermediate host and a fish as its second intermediate host. The parasite has been known to be problematic in regions that import fish from East Asia in addition to popping up in local populations where it is endemic. It is also interesting to note that this parasite has been identified in mummies and coprolites from Korea. This tells us that humans have a long history of association with this particular parasite.<br />
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The fish tapeworm, <i>D. latum</i>, also boasts a long association with humans. Coprolites from both North America and from South America have tested positive for this parasite. Some of the earliest New World human populations were infected with fish tapeworms, which makes sense given their proximity to water sources and diets that often integrated fish. A diet that included fish is evidenced by the existence of bones and scales in macroscopic remains from coprolites as well as in artifacts constructed from fish bones. This parasite infects freshwater fish, such as trout, and can be found just about anywhere in the world. It is often diagnosed in campers/fishermen who do not properly cook their catches and in sweet little old Jewish ladies who taste test tainted gefilte fish before the dish is fully cooked.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Anisakis </i>worms embedded in a herring.</td></tr>
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The last of the three, <i>A. simplex</i>, is by far the most notorious. This roundworm is cosmopolitan in nature, like <i>D. latum</i>, but prefers for its hosts to be marine fish as opposed to freshwater fish. It is most often associated with mackerel and herring, which has earned it the common name of "herring worm". Apparently it can infect many other marine fish and even things like squid. It has been contracted from dishes around the world including sushi/sashimi, cod livers, fermented herring, and ceviche. Though a person can experience mild to moderate abdominal pain after contracting one of the other two parasites mentioned here, a person contracting <i>A. simplex</i> will experience much more violent abdominal pains. These pains are sudden and severe by comparison because these worms actually die when they fail at their attempts to burrow into your intestines. This often instigates an IgE-mediated immune response (i.e. an allergic reaction, sometimes even anaphylaxis), making this parasite by far the most dangerous of the three discussed in this blogpost.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ceviche</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
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There are a great variety of symptoms to look out for if you think you may have picked up one of these parasites. Because they affect the digestive system, you may experience things like abdominal pain, vomiting, nausea, loss of appetite, and diarrhea. The first of the three parasites, <i>C. sinensis</i>, primarily affects the liver and may lead to hepatomegaly (enlarged liver) and jaundice. The fish tapeworm, <i>D. latum</i>, can cause irritability or muscle weakness in addition to numbing or tingling of the skin. It may also manifest as an elevated heart rate. The most prominent symptom for an <i>A. simplex</i> infection is the sudden and severe abdominal pain. As the parasites die, they can also cause anaphylactic shock or they can leave behind intestinal granulomas, which many times mimic the symptoms of people with Crohn's disease.<br />
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Now that I have you thoroughly terrified, let's talk about how much effort we go through to prevent ourselves from being infected. In the U.S. (and probably many other places), we have regulations pertaining to the serving of raw fish. Raw fish, no matter where it comes from, must be processed to make sure that parasites are killed. This is done by freezing and/or treating with salt and/or chlorine. The FDA states that freezing temperatures and times vary with the nature of the fish to be frozen and the parasites to be killed. It seems that they recommend between -4 degrees F or less for 7 days and -31 degrees F or less for 15 hours for most cuts of fish. Thicker cuts need to be kept colder longer. The FDA goes on to say that brining and pickling are not safe ways to control for fish parasites as they are not effective methods for reducing parasite threats. Recent studies have shown that while not optimally effective alone, treatment of fish with chlorine in conjunction with ultrasound processing significantly reduces parasites in fish meat. Using an ultrasound for at least 30 minutes is another method for controlling for fish parasites that seems to work pretty well. The only other method that this author knows about is treating the meat with at least 15% NaCl (salt) after 7 days of storage. The paper I read about that bit pointed out that 20% NaCl was better and could be used after only 6 days of storage. I'm sure there are other methods, but these seem to be the most prominent as far as I can tell.<br />
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The risk of actually contracting these parasites in the United States is low. The liver fluke<i> </i>(<i>C. sinensis</i>) is extremely rare in the U.S. with most reported cases demonstrating patients who contracted the parasite in another country before coming to the US.<i> </i>Infections with <i>D. latum</i> are also rare in the U.S. despite once being common in people living around the Great Lakes. Recent cases have popped up from the West Coast, but are still not very prevalent. There are less than 10 cases of anisakiasis reported each year in the U.S.<br />
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The other bit of good news is that if you happen to contract any of these by some off chance of bad luck, they are almost never fatal. Additionally, they are rather easy to treat with drugs readily available here in the states.<br />
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<b>The Moral of the Story</b><br />
Don't ever let anyone make you feel bad for eating sushi...unless you are in a country with poor food regulations and the food looks sketchy, then you should definitely not eat the sushi. Use good judgement and know the warning signs just in case. You should be able to get plenty of good sushi, sashimi, gefilte fish, and ceviche here in the US of A since we make it a point to be especially careful when handling raw fish. Go celebrate with a dragon roll or some ebi!!!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mmmmm!!!</td></tr>
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<br />JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-58117459562591877412013-12-21T18:39:00.003-08:002013-12-21T18:49:21.275-08:00Here's Lookin' at You, Giardia<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Oh, Hi!</i></td></tr>
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Arguably one of the most adorable of the diarrhea-causing protozoans would have to be members of <i>Giardia</i>. Sure, they cause terrible fatty stools, intestinal pain, and dehydration, but hey, at least it looks cute while doing it. I used to think that this parasite caused bloody stools, but I recently learned that this is not the case with <i>Giardia</i>. Rather, stools become "fatty". You see, as these parasites feed on mucous secretions within the intestinal walls of their hosts, they cause considerable damage to the microvilli and make it difficult for the intestine to absorb fats and other nutrients. This causes diarrhea and the aforementioned "fatty" stools. This parasite has been infecting humans for many, many years. Not many years ago we discovered that <i>Giardia</i> played a role in causing much of the dysentery contracted by the Crusaders in the 12th and 13th centuries as they invaded Palestine. The parasite didn't make its <br />
grand appearance onto the world stage until 1681, when Van Leeuwenhoek saw it for the first time. He found it as he examined his own stool during a bout of diarrhea exclaiming:<br />
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<i>"My excrement being so thin, I was at divers times persuaded to examine it; and each time I kept in mind what food I had eaten, and what drink I had drunk, and what I found afterwards. I have sometimes seen animalcules a-moving very prettily..."</i></div>
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But I suppose I'm getting a bit ahead of myself. Let's start with the basics.<br />
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<b>Taxonomy</b><br />
As with any discussion of protozoan systematics, please keep in mind that as researchers discover more about these creatures their taxonomic categorizations tend to change.<b> </b>It is likely that even the upper taxonomy I am about to describe has since changed and I myself could easily be behind the times as I don't study this parasite exclusively and am not familiar with the latest taxonomic literature regarding this group of organisms. Like many other things, protozoan taxonomy exists in a state of perpetual flux. Disclaimers aside, this group belongs to Phylum Retortamonada as it lacks both dictyosomes and mitochondria. Members of this group are all flagellated and are either intestinal parasites or live freely in anoxic kinds of environments. They further belong to Class Diplomonadea and to Order Diplomonadida. Members of this order have two karyomastigonts (nuclei and associated organelles) and twofold rotational symmetry. <i>Giardia</i> further belongs to the Family Hexamitidae for having two equally-sized nuclei arranged beside one another. This morphological feature gives them that endearing "looking at you" feature that's made them so famous.<br />
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Interestingly, there have been more than 40 species described from this genus, but many of these have now been rendered invalid with the advent of molecular biology. Today, only five species are considered valid species within this genus. Two species within this genus infect birds, one infects amphibians, and two infect mammals. Of those two, only one causes disease in humans: <i>G. duodenalis</i> (formerly known as both <i>G. intestinalis</i> and <i>G. lamblia</i>).<br />
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From an evolutionary standpoint, <i>Giardia duodenalis</i> is interesting to study. It's simplistic life and primitive morphology tells us that it is among the oldest of the protozoans. These guys are a basal group of protozoans existing before the development of mitochondria found in other protist groups. They also possess many flagella, which is also thought to be an ancestral condition.<br />
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<b>Life Cycle</b><br />
The life cycle of this parasite is simple.<b> </b>Fecal-oral contamination. Something that is infected poops in a place where the parasites won't dry out. At this point the parasites are in a cyst stage of their life cycle. When someone eats food that has been accidentally contaminated or drinks from a <i>Giardia</i>-rich water source, they pick up these cysts. Once in the body, the cysts transform into feeding stages known as "trophozoites". Trophozoites attach onto host intestinal tissues and feed off of the mucous linings causing all sorts of problems as it does so.<br />
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<b>Giardiasis (a.k.a. "Beaver Fever" or "Recreational Water Illness")</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>We are just hangin' out...<br />munchin' on some mucous, yo!</i></td></tr>
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Infection with this parasite is highly contagious. It spreads rapidly in areas where sanitation is not <i>G. duodenalis</i> either. These parasites can be passed by dogs, cats, sheep, and even beavers (hence the first common name for the disease). Infections are easily acquired from water parks, lakes, and even resorts (hence the second common name). It can also be contracted from unwashed fruits and vegetables, or from contaminated drinking water. <br />
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Much of the time, cases of giardiasis are so mild that they show no clinical symptoms. However, some cases include symptoms like incapacitating diarrhea, intestinal pain, weight loss, flatulence, dehydration, and excess mucous production. In severe cases, patients present with colic or jaundice caused by infections of the gallbladder. Because the parasites disrupt fat and nutrient absorption, dietary diseases can also be come an issue if left untreated long enough. There are very few fatalities, but the disease is certainly no picnic.<br />
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<b>Diagnosis</b><br />
Most of the time giardiasis can be confirmed by examining a stool sample for cysts and trophozoites. Immunological techniques are also useful today. Things like ELISA testing or the use of PCR have been helpful in diagnosing giardiasis. In rare cases, duodenal aspiration is required to demonstrate these life stages if a person is not regularly passing the parasites.<b> </b>Now, I had never heard of duodenal aspiration, but it sounded like it wouldn't be much fun. Looking it up confirmed my suspicions. This involves passing a tube orally into the duodenum (part of the small intestine) and aspirating to dislodge the parasites for a proper sample. Nope. Not fun at all. Then again I don't know if that would be worse than the alternative, which would be an intestinal biopsy. Pick your poison.<br />
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<b>Treatment </b><br />
Lucky for us, being diagnosed is more difficult than determining how to treat a person with giardiasis. Metronidazole and quinacrine are the two drugs most often chosen to combat infection. This completely cures the patient in only a few short days. Because it is highly contagious, it is good practice to dose all immediate family members/roommates as well to avoid reinfection. It is equally good practice to determine the source of infection to take the measures needed to prevent future infections.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Seriously, even with all the symptoms, you have to admit these are adorable little guys!</i></td></tr>
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<b>A Colorful History</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU4KhUCPLa__iiy2Cj5iQMqgGaKd6c7BVZZW44P0jTzO0oNF6pMQLUz16Snp8suJZGo2cBrvCt-v04YRh7bi4QMqfrLO_4Kns9j8_cZCmj3v5iMFne_YGlMN6Yo8mgfXoljrOWOvhqFKc/s1600/gmgiardia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU4KhUCPLa__iiy2Cj5iQMqgGaKd6c7BVZZW44P0jTzO0oNF6pMQLUz16Snp8suJZGo2cBrvCt-v04YRh7bi4QMqfrLO_4Kns9j8_cZCmj3v5iMFne_YGlMN6Yo8mgfXoljrOWOvhqFKc/s200/gmgiardia.jpg" width="151" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>I want one! <br />(The plush, obviously. <br />Not the actual parasite <br />despite its cuteness.)</i></td></tr>
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After appearing on Leeuwenkoek's microscope stage in 1681, this parasite went on to <b> </b>pop up in many places around the world. Giardiasis outbreaks have occurred in many countries with a variety of impacts, ranging from small, localized epidemics to large-scale contamination of major city water supplies. As archaeoparasitology extends its reach into the realm of molecular biology, ELISA and other techniques are being utilized to reveal more about the effects of these parasites in both historic and prehistoric human populations. As mentioned earlier, a 2008 study pegged this parasite as part of the reason that Crusaders suffered from dysentery. How cool is that?! Other studies have revealed <i>Giardia</i>'s presence in places far away, such as ancient Peru, as well as in places closer to home, such as a cemetery in Kansas dating from 1860 to 1900.<br />
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<b>Moral of the Story</b><br />
These ancient parasites are beginning to reveal to us more about the daily lives of people in both ancient and historic times the world over. They are teaching us that our ancestors suffered from some of the same things we struggle to combat even today despite our vast improvements in sanitation. Once again, here is a parasite to be admired...to be marveled at for its ability to survive this long as a species without something as fundamental as mitochondria. It's an easy parasite to love...it doesn't typically cause much more than discomfort, it's easy to treat, and let's face it, its morphology makes it kind of cute. (Plus you are very unlikely to die from it unless you refuse to get yourself treated.) Here's lookin' at you, <i>Giardia</i>.<br />
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<br />JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-89257040883755220092013-12-15T15:28:00.003-08:002013-12-15T15:31:37.023-08:00Behaviors, Diets, and Parasites in Antiquity: Hymenolepids in the Grain BinsOver the course of this semester, I've come to truly appreciate the interplay of diet, behavior, and parasitism. As a biologist, I find it fascinating to think about how the parasitism of a population is affected by the behaviors and the diets of host species. As a budding archaeoparasitologist, I find it even more fascinating to look at how human diets and behaviors have played significant roles in the diversity and prevalence of parasites that have wormed their way into our bodies (and of course our hearts...mostly in a metaphorical sense...).<br />
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One of the many parasites that is brought up in discussions of behavior, diet, and parasitism is a little tapeworm sometimes called the "dwarf tapeworm". It's name has been changed several times in the parasitological literature (<i>Taenia nana, </i><i>Hymenolepis fraterna,</i> and my personal favorite, <i>Vampirolepis nana</i>), but is currently called <i>Hymenolepis nana</i>. Another closely related parasite that can be brought up in such discussions is <i>Hymenolepis diminuta</i>.<br />
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<b>Taxonomy</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjFTWz7OEQ-VA9WM_Zo0m_hvKj0ilfTYjbrxqYyxRGY0idkU71mkWmmgGU9vbYq8cTkNFSCKh7zuMDfX0VeExbhm2ZPcH4tin-rum0dc4-_HHD1wPBsRnx7y0zEBjyCDGJPKrP-0qqBa4/s1600/220px-7_Scan_9_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjFTWz7OEQ-VA9WM_Zo0m_hvKj0ilfTYjbrxqYyxRGY0idkU71mkWmmgGU9vbYq8cTkNFSCKh7zuMDfX0VeExbhm2ZPcH4tin-rum0dc4-_HHD1wPBsRnx7y0zEBjyCDGJPKrP-0qqBa4/s200/220px-7_Scan_9_3.jpg" width="200" /></a>Like all tapeworms, these little dudes are classified as flatworms (Phylum Platyhelminthes) and belong to class Cestoda. They further belongs to the order<i></i> Cyclophyllidae since they have four acetabula on their scoleces, hooked rostellae, and since they possess a single, compact postovarian vitelline gland. Other famous members of this order include the notorious taeniids (beef and pork tapeworms as well as <i>Echinococcus</i> sp.) and <i>Dipylidium caninum</i>, the double-pored dog tapeworm. <i>H. nana</i> and <i>H. diminuta</i> both fall within the family Hymenolepididae and are the only members of this family known to infect humans. Other members infect other mammals or birds instead. Most of the hymenolepidids require an arthropod as their intermediate host.<br />
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<b>Life Cycles</b><br />
The life cycles for these tapeworms are very similar. They begin with eggs being shed in the feces of an infected person or rat. These eggs are eaten by beetles, such as grain beetles (<i>Tribolium</i> spp.), and then hatch within the beetle's intestine. A cysticercoid with a tail develops within the beetle's hemocoel and waits to be eaten by the definitive host. A rat or human eats the beetle and the parasites are released in their new host's duodenum. From here, the parasites become oncospheres by shedding their tails and burrowing into the intestinal villi. The tapeworms absorb nutrients through their teguments as they grow and eventually little gravid proglottids snap off to release the tapeworms' eggs out of the host's body via defecation. With <i>H. nana</i>, the beetle is not a needed host, but is utilized from time to time. This species of tapeworm can actually infect definitive hosts via direct contact with contaminated feces.<br />
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<b>Human Infection</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhctB1j3H7e2CiGDgtjYtw7L0wMcYJC11NfE-_DE0fSKTzis77gUyujsNSktcjNz-GvSMFSpeO2V6cDVzEEIRwUADsHFP057sK3K_0RuY2NF9XVEGPWZYcrgoUs8e5J2_2ywhdfyVpUu0g/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhctB1j3H7e2CiGDgtjYtw7L0wMcYJC11NfE-_DE0fSKTzis77gUyujsNSktcjNz-GvSMFSpeO2V6cDVzEEIRwUADsHFP057sK3K_0RuY2NF9XVEGPWZYcrgoUs8e5J2_2ywhdfyVpUu0g/s1600/images.jpg" /></a>We've already said that these guys can infect rats and humans alike, but we will just focus on humans for the sake of this post. (Sorry rats, another day!) As far as I can tell, there are rarely any major types of pathology related to infections with either of these tapeworms. It seems that the only real problems occur when a person is heavily infected with these worms...at which point the symptoms are similar to those for other tapeworm infections (e.g. abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, dizziness, anemia, etc.). When one is infected with either <i>H. nana</i> or <i>H. diminuta</i>, it is easy to cure with a dose of our old friend, Praziquantel. This drug is quick acting and does not typically require multiple doses.<br />
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<i><b>Hymenolepis</b></i><b> sp. in Archaeoparasitology</b><br />
These tapeworms are found intermittently in coprolites from a variety of areas in the New World. Most cases are thought to have come from humans accidentally ingesting grain beetle gunk that got ground up when grains containing the beetles were being processed with stone tools. Since many rockselters where coprolites have been excavated make suitable habitat for small rodents, it is also possible that rats may have contaminated food sources or may have been a contaminated food source themselves. There is also the possibility that people were eating other kinds of beetles that housed one of these tapeworms. This could be especially true for <i>H. diminuta</i>, which has experimentally demonstrated that it can utilize over 90 different species of arthropods as intermediate hosts! It may sound weird today, but beetles and their grubs were great sources of protein for our ancestors. It would not be surprising to learn that they were eating infected beetles picked fresh from the vine or dug up with roots of tasty plants.<br />
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Archaeoparasitologists have demonstrated the presence of these tapeworms in coprolites from a number of archaeological sites. From Arizona, <i>H. nana</i> was found in Antelope House dating between 1175-1250AD. From nearby, <i>Hymenolepis</i> sp. was reported from Elden Pueblo, which dates from 1070-1250AD. From further south comes a report of <i>Hymenolepis</i> sp. from <span class="a" style="left: 430px; top: 5010px; word-spacing: -1px;">Santa Elina, Mato Grosso</span> in Brazil that dates from 4000-2000BP. Such finds make it evident that these parasites have been opportunistically associated with humans for quite some time.<br />
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<b>Moral of the Story</b><br />
It is interesting to think of how behaviors such as no longer eating beetles on a regular basis or being perfectly content to crush grain beetles into our food have changed the type of parasites we as a society contract. Such simple changes in our diets and in how meticulous we've become in terms of food inspections have made cases of human infections with these parasites extremely rare occurrences in today's world. <b> </b>It is amazing to think that not only what we eat, but what the things we eat are eating, can have an impact on our parasite burdens as a society. This dance between parasites, host behaviors, and dietary preferences is a wondrous one to behold. I'm hoping to soon get funding to further explore this balance along with how these things had effects on the development of the human immune system. I hope the grant proposal gets accepted...this would be quite an amazing dance to watch as the mysteries of our ancestors unfolds before my eyes. Here's to hoping the reviewers feel the same way!JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-53012625659847832822013-12-08T15:02:00.001-08:002013-12-08T15:02:35.490-08:00Of Ants and Ungulates: The Notorius Dicrocoelium dendriticumGreetings all! First and foremost, I must apologize for the entire month of November. I didn't post anything because I was caught up in the madness that was NaNoWriMo 2013! (I wrote a sequel to my NaNo2012 novel, but it is going to need LOTS of work to be anywhere near ready for publication, in case you were wondering.) And for more lame excuses for abandoning you, I've been busy working on a grant proposal and on generally trying to wrap up this roller coaster of a semester. My distractions aside, I decided today was a good day to pick back up where I left off with blogging.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTbQvsfpF1OdaxdU-PxATXvfkpN9LTvMNnKZhJkdfkZGTM4II7y4Yz68VTYa-LFCljDRyWKbhGzAywr-VLlJFpF1QjUAJ3_zSxV9SOHdrF8eeuysUQX7tv14s9hZEl-mxcWEgU_Ag-ts0/s1600/Dicro.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTbQvsfpF1OdaxdU-PxATXvfkpN9LTvMNnKZhJkdfkZGTM4II7y4Yz68VTYa-LFCljDRyWKbhGzAywr-VLlJFpF1QjUAJ3_zSxV9SOHdrF8eeuysUQX7tv14s9hZEl-mxcWEgU_Ag-ts0/s320/Dicro.gif" width="320" /></a>Today, I present to you a parasite that has been studied exhaustively because of its commercial significance and because of its interesting life cycle. This parasite is a liver fluke most often found in ungulate (sheep, goats, cows, pigs, etc.) mammals. It has a blade-like tapered body giving it the common name of "lancet fluke". I'm speaking of course, of <i>Dicrocoelium dendriticum</i>.<br />
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<b>Taxonomy</b><br />
The lancet fluke belongs to the phylum platyhelminthes ("flatworms") along with free-living turbellarians (planarians), cestodes (tapeworms), and other members of class trematoda, (a.k.a. "trematodes" or "flukes").<b> </b>Within class trematoda lies subclass digenea, a group characterized by life cycles with two or more hosts (typically including a molluscan host). <i>D. dendriticum</i> belongs to order plagiorchiformes within this subclass. The adults of this order are quite diverse, but the larval and juvenile stages are fairly conserved among its members. Members of this order have small eggs that are often eaten by a snail and cercariae are simple with a finfold on the dorsal side. The family of this parasite is family dicrocoeliidae, which is one of the three major families of liver flukes (along with fasciolidae and opisthorchiidae). Members of this family rarely parasitize humans, but are known to parasitize other mammals, especially domestic animals. All members possess a subterminal oral sucker and an anterior acetabulum.<br />
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<b>Life Cycle</b><br />
The life cycle of this parasite is an eloquent complex of evolutionary wonder. It begins, as many life cycles do, with the feces of an infected mammal falling to the grass laden with <i>Dicrocoelium</i> eggs. Along comes a hungry snail, which devours the delicious droppings. Inside of the snail, the miracidium hatches from the egg and undergoes a variety of bodily transformations. The parasite then finds its way (at this point in the form of a cercaria) into a slimeball that gets excreted by the snail. Snail slimeballs make tasty snacks for unsuspecting ants. After ingesting the cercaria, the parasite forms a metacercarial cyst within the body of the ant. This is when the most interesting aspect of this life cycle comes into play. The parasite, through processes not completely understood, is able to manipulate the behavior of its new host in order to continue its life cycle. For whatever reason, infected ants will climb onto tall vegetation in the evenings and lock their mandibles onto plants. This behavior is totally uncharacteristic of uninfected ants. The next day, the ants are eaten accidentally by grazing ungulates. Within the bile duct of the ungulate, the parasite joins thousands of other liver flukes and matures into adulthood. From there, the parasite mates with another and after about a month begins releasing eggs to perpetuate the life cycle and preserve the species.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrO6a22AAoRb_7teKPR24qMYHTQylzevHr5NEYe-7iU_rHSC829oM3vayMbXZIaHVJWp1Xdi8uLBs-a-EDYnc1D7JOPYrUe8wmkSexzWzL9_sbZf7GZyR_nMC8jefwRqpNBfbw7RFzhig/s1600/Dicrocoelium-Drawing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="579" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrO6a22AAoRb_7teKPR24qMYHTQylzevHr5NEYe-7iU_rHSC829oM3vayMbXZIaHVJWp1Xdi8uLBs-a-EDYnc1D7JOPYrUe8wmkSexzWzL9_sbZf7GZyR_nMC8jefwRqpNBfbw7RFzhig/s640/Dicrocoelium-Drawing.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<b>Dicrocoeliiasis</b><br />
Infection with this parasite typically presents as general dysfunction of the bile ducts due to irritation and over population in a finite area. Symptoms often include inflammation of the bile ducts, liver cell death, and fibrosis. Many types of ungulates, including sheep, deer, goats, pigs, and cattle, have been reported as having this parasite, making it agriculturally important to study.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSJGfDR2lA4XmWqVHzEVfiwrqJzufVOY7l8AMOTU3qrlGaA-kMlBviYa8QFd-trgks205IJkKpZwxYXNGoGG0dn183tK62vcLzg087ZF4nO41BR0_NfU2EjWUn1Ia95BSe5m05jOlllD0/s1600/ant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSJGfDR2lA4XmWqVHzEVfiwrqJzufVOY7l8AMOTU3qrlGaA-kMlBviYa8QFd-trgks205IJkKpZwxYXNGoGG0dn183tK62vcLzg087ZF4nO41BR0_NfU2EjWUn1Ia95BSe5m05jOlllD0/s200/ant.jpg" width="200" /></a> There have been reports of <i>D. dendriticum</i> infections in humans,
but most were instances of false parasitism. This means that people
passed eggs after eating an infected liver but did not actually become
infected themselves. True infections have been reported from Asia,
Africa, Europe, and one case in New Jersey.<br />
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<b>Treatment</b><br />
There is not currently a good method for preventing the spread of this disease. After all, land snails and ants are never in short supply in the pastures where livestock are allowed to graze. For treatment of infected livestock, praziquantel and various benzimidazoles are the drugs of choice. Unfortunately, without adequate control measures, infection rates will continue to be high, meaning that treatment might not be economical for ranchers. With human infections, praziquantel is most often prescribed to take care of the infection.<br />
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<b>Moral of the Story </b><br />
As with so many other fascinating parasites, behavioral modification of hosts continues to be a critical survival strategy. Ants must be easy targets for such manipulation due to their abundance and reliance on chemical stimuli. This is demonstrated time and again with how easily parasites seem to be able to zombify these colonial insects! More to the credit of the lancet fluke, the evolutionary processes involved in the development of its life cycle are impressive, to say the very least. The fact that this fluke not only managed to dupe ants into becoming kamikaze vessels for the benefit of the fluke's species, but the fluke also evolved beyond the reliance on water that is so commonly seen amongst other trematodes. What a beautifully crafted life cycle for such an interesting and unique organism! Just for funzies, here's a link to a sweet comic about this parasite from The Oatmeal. (You know a parasite is cool if it makes The Oatmeal! :p) Enjoy!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://theoatmeal.com/comics/captain_higgins"><span style="font-size: large;">Why Captain Higgins is My Favorite Parasitic Flatworm</span></a></div>
JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-44373891631272318352013-10-27T08:31:00.001-07:002013-10-27T08:31:38.330-07:00Hookworms in the Pre-Clovis New World: Keys to Understanding Human MigrationsHey everyone! Sorry that it's been so long since my last post. This whole month has been a blur of crazy. On the upside, I went to a conference last week and learned a LOT about human migrations into the New World. I went as a tag-along with my major professor and a friend. They presented some of their amazing work on parasites from Paisley Cave. For those of you who don't know, Paisley Cave is an excavation site in Oregon that has some really groovy pre-Clovis human artifacts and remains. When they received coprolites from this cave, they had expected to find something like an acanthocephalan, but what they found was much, much more exciting. From these 9,000-year-old coprolites came some of the most beautifully preserved hookworm eggs you've ever seen!<br />
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I know what you are thinking...who cares? Right? (Stop that! This is cool stuff!) You should all care, and here's why. Hookworms are tropical parasites....and they were found in Oregon at a site dating back to the days before people developed agriculture in the New World!!! So now the big question...how the hell did they get there? Hookworm larvae need a very specific set of environmental conditions to survive. You see, the life cycle of these hookworms involves adults laying their eggs in the human intestine, which get passed through the feces and into the soil. Once the eggs finally hatch in the soil (which must be warm and moist), the juvenile hookworms crawl about until they are able to penetrate through the skin of their next host. Because part of the life cycle is dependent on having the proper environmental conditions, it is remarkable to find the eggs of this parasite so far north, and dating back to a time when ice sheets covered much of the northern parts of the continent. <br />
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The really cool thing that comes out of all of this is that it challenges our theories about humans walking across the Bering Strait and down through the "ice-free corridor". Hookworms would not have made this trip because of their environment-dependent life cycle unless humans moved super fast via the predicted route. However, a coastal migration could explain the continual propagation of these parasites in pre-Clovis humans. A coastal migration could have moved people faster into the southern parts of the continent. Between moving quicker down the coastline and the possible formation of microclimates suitable for hookworms (e.g. Paisley Cave with it's hot mess of filth and areas of heat-radiating decomposition), the coastal migration hypothesis seems to make the most sense for why we would find hookworms in Paisley Cave. <br />
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There are also theories proposing a trans-pacific route of migration that is substantiated by craniometric data among other things. If there is anything to take away from this conference, it is the fact that we don't really know how humans got to this part of the world. Despite all of our discoveries and investigations, we simply don't know. However, there is good evidence to support the idea that there were probably multiple migrations into the New World. It will be exciting to see what we will learn about human migrations over the next few years as more excavations are conducted and more artifacts and remains are analyzed. I can't wait to see the role parasites will continue to play as we uncover more and more about the story of how we came to populate the Americas.JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1302785245514968745.post-70613065467318748282013-09-28T17:43:00.003-07:002013-10-07T18:37:14.558-07:00Ancient Parasites of Puppies in Egypt<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdjFRLTWp87CXg2qRXeJ8Zcze4pyhfsA4HsUN3i6o4BFOkyZq5klnx6qEI8CrmgZGfBm3JcRV81LdmeSRsEtb7E6ENEengNmK5kmeH1wa8TpZ41xAn5BZ_ZZb9n1ya0JBJxkGq2q0M2uQ/s1600/mummy-dog-2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdjFRLTWp87CXg2qRXeJ8Zcze4pyhfsA4HsUN3i6o4BFOkyZq5klnx6qEI8CrmgZGfBm3JcRV81LdmeSRsEtb7E6ENEengNmK5kmeH1wa8TpZ41xAn5BZ_ZZb9n1ya0JBJxkGq2q0M2uQ/s320/mummy-dog-2.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Researchers showing the infested ear of the mummified dog.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
A really great article came out in the International Journal of Paleopathology last month. It was en<span style="font-size: small;">titled, "</span>The dog mummy, the ticks and the louse fly: Archaeological report of severe ectoparasitosis in Ancient Egypt". In this paper, a site in El Deir, Egypt was excavated between 2010 and 2011. There were hundreds of mummified dogs found at the site. One of the dog mummies was unique from the others...it had ectoparasites!<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">This dog represents the first real evidence of canine ectoparasitism in Ancient Egypt. Researchers found a great load of ticks and a louse fly still attached to the ears and coat of the mummified pup. These parasites may have been vectors for a variety of diseases that could have lead to the early passing of the young dog.</span></span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiYQQK7Rb61ZVx7JJHx1Zk7REl5bkIB7ZAimyGFMaXFrg78XA1G8dspJ3SZb80wFFS_1Dao24jmD9WvXkFNdGtjQoU1LjZjOjpdRGdYIPPBnEnXNS87nQHfz3xtN837ZHXsxAhghsZjP4/s1600/mummy-dog-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiYQQK7Rb61ZVx7JJHx1Zk7REl5bkIB7ZAimyGFMaXFrg78XA1G8dspJ3SZb80wFFS_1Dao24jmD9WvXkFNdGtjQoU1LjZjOjpdRGdYIPPBnEnXNS87nQHfz3xtN837ZHXsxAhghsZjP4/s400/mummy-dog-8.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mummified dog's ear infested with ticks.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">People have suspected that such diseases existed in antiquity based on the writings of early Greek and Latin scholars. Aristotle called do parasites <i>kunorhaistes</i>, a.k.a "dog destroyer". Homer described Ulysses' dog as being infested by the same. Pliny the Elder also described ticks that burdened dogs of his day saying:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>"There is an animal...that always lives with its head fixed in the blood of a host, and consequently goes on swelling, as it is the only animal that has no vent for its food; with gorging to excess it bursts, so dying of its very nutriment. This creature...occurs frequently in oxen and occasionally in dogs in which all creatures breed."</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i> </i> </span></span></div>
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">The oldest record of ticks exists in a piece of art dating back to Ancient Egypt. This art depicts a "hyena-like animal" with ticks in its ear and dates to the 15th century B. C. The piece is currently housed in the Metropolitain Museum of Art in New York. This new paper represents the first time that anyone has actually found hard evidence that such ectoparasites did, in fact, exist. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLplK2yN5j0IU8ZZZg4z1ZjM-EQIbpUq1zvuCyXjYEMCNimaPNvkNof101yI3UbQAQR6cc9HVYZFUMUjHPg7xiN1hh5nSpZxPt6RY_mXTzdQ0ZgPdJe6dPmLjzRvRMLnk1iXE5bsz5iwo/s1600/egypt-ticks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLplK2yN5j0IU8ZZZg4z1ZjM-EQIbpUq1zvuCyXjYEMCNimaPNvkNof101yI3UbQAQR6cc9HVYZFUMUjHPg7xiN1hh5nSpZxPt6RY_mXTzdQ0ZgPdJe6dPmLjzRvRMLnk1iXE5bsz5iwo/s400/egypt-ticks.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Piece from the Tomb of Intef, New Kingdom, Thebes, Upper Egypt.</td></tr>
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Okay, parasite details! Parasite details! The ectoparasites found fell into two types. The first was the brown dog tick, <i>Rhipicephalus sanguineus</i>, a type of hard tick found commonly all over the world, but especially in warm climates. The second type was the louse fly, <i>Hippobosca longipennis</i>, a type of hippoboscid fly native to Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">There were 61 individual specimens of the hard tick recovered from the dog mummy with 38% of them pulled out of the inner ear alone. This indicates that the 4-5 month old puppy may have suffered from problems like anemia or tick-borne pathogens. Only a single louse fly was found on the coat of the animal. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">The researchers also found the puparia of flies belonging in the families of Calliphoridae and Sarcophagidae. The presence of these puparia could have been a source of myiasis (the infection of a live mammal with the larvae of these flies). However, the presence of these flies may also have invaded the dog mummies post-mortem. (Which I, personally, feel is more likely.)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Moral of the Story</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">It is pretty exciting to find solid proof of canine parasitism dating back to Ancient Egypt. That being said, I have to wonder whether or not a parasitologist was a part of this research. I have a few questions that come to mind about this amazing ectoparasite discovery. First and foremost, why the hell were the ticks still attached to the dog? Usually, when a tick's host dies, the ticks...to the best of my limited knowledge...abandon ship and go off questing for another host with their little jointed appendages reaching out for love. Yet, here we find amazingly well-preserved ticks that, quite literally, had a death grip on the ears of these dogs. WHY? The authors proposed that the ticks were still there because their hypostomes have been known to sort of get stuck from time to time and stay attached to their hosts. (They did not cite this assertion, so I'm not sure where that has been reported.) Sure, the ticks might not pop off immediately, but I doubt they would hang on to the point that they would die and become mummified along with their host. I'm thinking there had to be something else going on here! The authors also proposed that perhaps the parasites were vectors for diseases that led to the early demise of the dog. Though completely plausible, I'm not sure that I totally buy into this idea. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDGuceIFFwvdQy29vmDl1sJX08ChppDhHIHt4-R25HXmTIkr5qyV8eBv4jDQorUJ-GmiD8PEZ2SF2Yu-Y4D_uQkLIxD-eQrS_Ff7DKgHN5Ke_k8mooALXtAWLpkocFHRLA8RyGFlMfM7g/s1600/1-s2.0-S1879981713000764-gr5.sml.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDGuceIFFwvdQy29vmDl1sJX08ChppDhHIHt4-R25HXmTIkr5qyV8eBv4jDQorUJ-GmiD8PEZ2SF2Yu-Y4D_uQkLIxD-eQrS_Ff7DKgHN5Ke_k8mooALXtAWLpkocFHRLA8RyGFlMfM7g/s320/1-s2.0-S1879981713000764-gr5.sml.gif" width="224" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parasites and puparia collected <br />
from dog mummies.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Another question that came to mind for me was the authors' theory that perhaps the puparia belonged to flies that had invaded their hosts' tissues while the hosts were still alive. I'm not really buying that one either. I believe that it is far more likely that these puparia belonged to flies that laid eggs/larvae in their hosts post-mortem. After hatching and molting, they would have pupated prior to some abrupt happenstance that preserved them before they could complete their life cycle. (Although many of the puparia were fragments rather than whole puparia, indicating that many of the flies may have completed their life cycle without hindrance.) It seems to me that perhaps the dog died in some way that killed the ticks and louse fly as quickly as it killed the dogs (perhaps a strong poison of some sort?) or possibly the dog became paralyzed (via ticks or from whatever caused the three vertebral dislocations I didn't mention earlier) and the owners entombed the dog thinking it was dead. In either case, perhaps the dog's body was left exposed long enough for flesh flies and blow flies to invade its corpse. Afterwards, the dog was placed in what I'm speculating may have been an anaerobic environment that could have halted the lives of the flies just after reaching their pupal stages. This would be one explanation for the presence of these flies and arachnids found in these mummies.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">My biological curiosities aside, it is very important that we can definitively say that the ectoparasitism of domesticated dogs dates back to the days of Ancient Egypt. This is an incredible find in that it tells us that the host-parasite interactions found in modern canines are not all that different from those found thousands of years ago. It is also interesting to note that the morphology of the brown dog tick hasn't changed much in all that time...I suppose<i> if it ain't broke</i>... This research will be helpful for those who are especially interested in the evolution of canine parasitism. Hooray for paleoparasitology!!!</span></span>JJ_Parasitophiliachttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04734373935241438896noreply@blogger.com4