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Physaloptera

Physaloptera is a genus of parasitic nematodes in the family Physalopteridae.

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Jun 19, 2026
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Wikipedia ↗

Physaloptera is a genus of parasitic nematodes in the family Physalopteridae.

Physaloptera
P. ngoci, male caudal extremity 1
P. ngoci, scanning electron microscopy
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Nematoda
Class: Chromadorea
Order: Rhabditida
Family: Physalopteridae
Genus: Physaloptera
Rudolphi, 1819
Species

See text

Systematics

Species include:

  • Physaloptera dilatata2
  • Physaloptera dispar3
  • Physaloptera hispida4
  • Physaloptera losseni2
  • Physaloptera maxillaris5
  • Physaloptera murisbrasiliensis4
  • Physaloptera ngoci 1
  • Physaloptera preputialis6
  • Physaloptera retusa2
  • Physaloptera rara7

Undescribed or unidentified species have been found on the hispid cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus) in the southern United States,4 the marsh rice rat (Oryzomys palustris) in Florida,8 and Leontopithecus rosalia, Physalaemus soaresi, Cacajao calvus, and Lagothrix lagotricha in Brazil.2

Physaloptera spp. as human parasites

Physaloptera spp. eggs found in a grave of the Bronze Age in Iran source ↗

Most species utilize insects such as crickets, cockroaches, and beetles as intermediate hosts.9 Several species of Physaloptera can parasitize primates, including humans.1011 This rare disease is known as spiruridiasis. Human infection is considered to be ancient; eggs of Physaloptera sp. were found in a grave of the Bronze Age in Iran.9

References

References

  1. Veciana, Marina; Chaisiri, Kittiponk; Morand, Serge; Miquel, Jordi; Ribas, Alexis (2013). "New biogeographical and morphological information on Physaloptera ngoci Le-Van-Hoa, 1961 (Nematoda: Physalopteridae) in South-east Asian rodents". Parasite. 20: 23. doi:10.1051/parasite/2013023. ISSN 1776-1042. PMC 3718517. PMID 23815881.
  2. Muniz-Pereira et al., 2009, p. 11
  3. Santana et al., 2010, p. 106
  4. Kinsella, 1974, p. 9
  5. Dragoo and Sheffield, 2009, p. 5
  6. Mirzayans, 1971
  7. Petri, Leo H. (September 1950). "Life Cycle of Physaloptera rara Hall and Wigdor, 1918 (Nematoda: Spiruroidea) with the Cockroach, Blatella germanica, Serving as the Intermediate Host". Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science. 53 (3): 331–337. doi:10.2307/3626145. JSTOR 3626145.
  8. Kinsella, 1988, table 1
  9. Makki, Mahsasadat; Dupouy-Camet, Jean; Seyed Sajjadi, Seyed Mansour; Moravec, František; Reza Naddaf, Saied; Mobedi, Iraj; Malekafzali, Hossein; Rezaeian, Mostafa; Mohebali, Mehdi; Kargar, Faranak; Mowlavi, Gholamreza (2017). "Human spiruridiasis due to Physaloptera spp. (Nematoda: Physalopteridae) in a grave of the Shahr-e Sukhteh archeological site of the Bronze Age (2800–2500 BC) in Iran". Parasite. 24: 18. doi:10.1051/parasite/2017019. ISSN 1776-1042. PMC 5467177. PMID 28573969.
  10. Leiper, Robert T. (1907). "Physaloptera mordens: A new intestinal parasite of man". Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 1: 76–IN1. doi:10.1016/S0035-9203(07)90015-2. ISSN 0035-9203.
  11. Lleras, Andres Soriano; Pan, Chiatung (1955). "Two cases of Physaloptera infection in man from Colombia". The Journal of Parasitology. 41 (6): 635. doi:10.2307/3274147. ISSN 0022-3395. JSTOR 3274147.

Literature cited

  • Dragoo, J.W.; Sheffield, S.R. (2009). "Conepatus leuconotus (Carnivora: Mephitidae)". Mammalian Species. 827: 1–8. doi:10.1644/827.1.
  • Kinsella, J.M. (1974). "Comparison of helminth parasites of the cotton rat, Sigmodon hispidus, from several habitats in Florida". American Museum Novitates (2540): 1–12. hdl:2246/2742.
  • Kinsella, J.M. 1988. Comparison of helminths of rice rats, Oryzomys palustris, from freshwater and saltwater marshes in Florida. Proceedings of the Helminthological Society of Washington 55(2):275–280.
  • Mirzayans, A (1971). "Incidence of gastrointestinal helminths of domestic cats in the Teheran area of Iran". The Journal of Parasitology. 57 (6): 1296. doi:10.2307/3277984. JSTOR 3277984. PMID 5157163.
  • Muniz-Pereira, L.C.; Vieira, F.M.; Luque, J.L. (2009). "Checklist of helminth parasites of threatened vertebrate species from Brazil". Zootaxa. 2123: 1–45. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.2123.1.1.
  • Santana, E.M.; Jantz, H.E.; Best, T.L. (2010). "Atelerix albiventris (Erinaceomorpha: Erinaceidae)". Mammalian Species. 42 (857): 99–110. doi:10.1644/857.1.