Secretory Activity by the Scolex of Echinococcus granulosus in vitro

Abstract

DURING recent work on the in vitro cultivation of the hydatid organism, Echinococcus granulosus, observations were made on living 35-day-old strobila freshly removed from the intestine of dogs. Strobila were examined as quickly as possible after autopsy on a warm stage in hydatid fluid or Parker's 199 medium. The scolex showed a very marked activity, one phase of which was characterized by the rostellum region being expanded to its limit—a process resulting in the hooks being raised to form an anterior disk (Fig. 1). This phase may be only momentarily observed for it rapidly changes to one in which the hooks are lowered. This represented a picture of the behaviour pattern of the Echinococcus scolex not evident from text-book illustrations, which appear to be based on fixed specimens.