Trematode (Noun)
Meaning
Parasitic flatworms having external suckers for attaching to a host.
Classification
Nouns denoting animals.
Examples
- The trematode, commonly known as a fluke, infects its host through open sores or unbroken skin when coming into contact with contaminated water.
- Digenetic trematode lifecycles involve two main hosts, often with one host an invertebrate such as a snail, and the other host an invertebrate or a vertebrate.
- After several weeks of infestation, symptoms from a trematode infection typically arise as it lays eggs in the host, depending on the type of fluke and the host's reaction to the eggs.
- Fasciola hepatica is one well-known example of a trematode which infests sheep, cattle, and pigs as an adult parasite and its life cycle employs freshwater snails and herbivorous mammals.
- One of the unique features of this parasitic trematode is its ability to suppress its host's immune system, leading to the host being left prone to other life-threatening infections.