Page:The Indian Journal of Medical Research, Volume 9.djvu/49

 BY M. B. SOPARKAR, m.p. (Bombay Univorsity). Frntn the Bombay Bacteriolog.'cal Laboratory. (With PlaUt lll~VI.) (Rfoeived for'pablication, October 2". 1920.1

The study of the Indian forms of furcocercous cprcaria> is of very recent date. During the present investigation which began about the end of 1916, one of the problems taken in hand was to ascertain whether any of the local mollu.scs was capable of acting as an intermediate host of human bilharzial disease of Eg>-pt. It was necessary before untiertaking thes« experiments to determine how far the indigenous molluscs were already naturally infected with trematwle larvae. In the course of these inve«tigations, large numbers of fresh water molluscs were examined and different types of furcocercous and other cercaria? were discovered. The importance of the furcocercous group of cercarim lies in the fact that the larval forms nf schistosomes or the bilharzial [wirasites of man, domestic animals, and birds belong to this group. A prominent feature of this group is the presence of a bifurcate<l tail. Although the general appearance of most of these furcocercaria; is similar, minute differences in structure exist by which it is possible to differentiate one specii-s from the other. A detailed study of the structure is, therefore, essential for the diagnosis of species as well as for purposes of comparison.

Paast(i) (quoted by Kemp and Gravely)(*) observes that ' a mer<; superficial description of the worm is a distinct burden on the literature. The cercaria should be carefully 8tu<lie<l in minute detail or not at sll.' ( 23 )