Syllabus
Recommended course for admission to the follow-up master study of parasitology. For students applying in this field it is advisable to complete the first or second year of bachelor study.
The lecture defines the term parasitism, deals with parasites important for human and veterinary medicine (parasitic protozoa, worms/helminths and arthropods) and other types of parasites and parasite-like organisms (parasitoids, epibiones, forons, etc.). The course represents parasitism as a biological phenomenon encountered at all stages of the organization of living matter; gives an overview of the biology, distribution, life cycles of parasites and the ways of parasite transmission and basic survival strategies in the host. The course mentions basic information about infectious biology and epidemiology, symptomatics and pathogenesis of parasitic infections, possibilities of therapy and prevention. Part of the course is devoted to transmission of infectious diseases by blood-feeding arthropods including factors affecting parasite-vector-host interactions. The course also explains the basic principle of the circulation of various pathogens in nature and their danger to humans. Emphasis is also placed on emerging diseases, both at home (the Czech Republic) and abroad, and on the zoonotic potential of many pathogens. The aim is also to describe the practical aspects of the occurrence of parasites in humans and pets or livestock.
Systematic part – an overview of presented parasites:
Platyhelminthes: Fluke: Schistosoma spp., Cercaria dermatitis, liver, pulmonary and intestinal infections by fluke.
Monogenea.
Tapeworms of the genus Diphyllobothrium, Hymenolepis, Taenia, Echinococcus.
Nematoda: Strongyloides stercoralis, Strongylidae, Enterobius vermicularis, Ascaris lumbricoides and Toxocara, Dracunculus medinensis, Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi, Onchocerca volvulus and Trichuris.
Acanthocephala
Annelida (leeches): Hirudo medicinalis et al.
Protozoa: Trypanosomes - T. brucei and T. cruzi, leishmanias, Giardia intestinalis, Trichomonas vaginalis, Entamoeba histolytica, free-living amoebae (Naegleria, Acantamoeba) causing accidental infections. Coccidia (Eimeria, Isospora, Toxoplasma), Plasmodium – causative agents of human malaria, babesia. Parasitic ciliates (Ciliata).
Microsporidia.
Myxosporea.
Opportunistic infections in immunodefective persons including Pneumocystis carinii.
Arthropoda: soft ticks (Argasidae), hard ticks (Ixodidae), Sarcoptes scabiei, Neotrombicula autumnalis, Demodex mites, allergic mites,
Insects
Lice (Anoplura), bugs (Cimex lectularius, Triatominae), fleas (Aphaniptera)
Diptera fly: family Culicidae, Psychodidae, Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, Tabanidae, Stomoxyidae, Glossinidae, Hippoboscidae.
Ditera fly causing myiasis (Oestridae, Cuterebridae, Calliphoridae and Sarcophagidae).
Parazitoidi.
Fungal diseases.
Plants like parasites.
Plants as hosts: phytonematodes, oomycetes, gall parasites.
Breeding and social parasites: birds, ants and bees.
Annotation
It is recommended to complete this course in the first or second year of bachelor study; however this course is also suitable for other students (including the follow-up master study).
The subject acquaints with parasitism from the point of view of human and veterinary medicine as well as from the ecological (parasitism as a biological phenomenon) and zoological (biological) point of view.
Emphasis is placed on the basic life cycles and strategies of parasites, including the relationship between the parasite and the host. In the systematic part, the most important parasites of humans and farm animals are discussed; in detail the subject deals with the most important parasites of humans in the world and in the Czech Republic. The systematic part is divided into (i) Parasitic helminths (Flukes, Tapeworms, and Monogeneans), (ii) Parasitic protozoa and (iii) Arthropods as blood-feeders and disease vectors. In addition to these groups, attention is also paid to parasitoids, parasitic plants and parasitic fungi, phytopathogens, as well as brood/nesting or social parasitism. Emphasis is also placed on emerging parasitic diseases of animals and plants in the Czech Republic and abroad.