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Schistosomula of Schistosoma mansoni feeding on red blood cells.Schistosome parasites are the causative agents of schistosomiasis, a global disease affecting more than 200 million people worldwide. Free-swimming infectious cercariae exit a freshwater snail to find a mammalian host, and upon penetration of host skin, lose their tail, transform into schistosomula (seen in the image), and mature into adult worms. In Milligan and Jolly, the Mef2 protein, a conserved schistosome transcriptional activator, is identified and described, and may have potential as a drug target to treat schistosome infection.
Image Credit: John N. Milligan (Case Western Reserve University)