Schistosome eggs. Light micrograph of eggs from the fluke Schistosoma haematobium, the cause of the disease schistosomiasis (bilharzia). Eggs expelled

---

Schistosome eggs. Light micrograph of eggs from the fluke Schistosoma haematobium, the cause of the disease schistosomiasis (bilharzia). Eggs expelled from infected humans enter lakes and rivers, hatch into larvae and infect aquatic snails, where they develop into cercariae. After leaving the snail the cercariae infect humans who enter the water. The mature adult form lives in veins around the bladder, where the females lay eggs. The large spine on each egg secures it in the wall of the bladder, from where it leaves the body in the urine. Untreated schistosomiasis causes kidney and liver damage. Differential interference contrast. Magnification unknown.

---

Size: 4540px × 3091px
Photo credit: © SINCLAIR STAMMERS/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animal, bilharzia, contrast, development, differential, disease, egg, eggs, flatworm, fluke, haematobium, interference, invertebrate, invertebrates, light, micrograph, nature, parasite, parasitic, pathogen, pathogenic, pathogens, platyhelminthes, schistosoma, schistosomiasis, spine, spines, spiny, wildlife, zoology