6^th International Workshop on Cestode Systematics and Phylogeny

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3. Life cycles

 Coordinators

Tim D. J. Littlewood, The Natural History Museum, London, UK (t.littlewood@nhm.ac.uk)

Boyko B. Georgiev, Parasite Biodiversity Group, Central Laboratory of General Ecology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria (bbg@ecolab.bas.bg)

 Annotation to working group

Life cycle studies of tapeworm have been a central means of determining the interaction of the parasites with their surroundings. Life cycles provide knowledge of ecology, ontogeny, host-parasite interactions and host specificity. Comparing life cycles provides a means of revealing past evolutionary events, and (arguably) the opportunity to target and reveal cryptic biodiversity of cestode infections in hitherto unsampled hosts and biomes. Modern molecular methods offer the opportunity of completing life cycle by providing diagnostic markers that link larval forms that are difficult or impossible to classify by morphology alone, with adults. Here we investigate what is known about cestode life cycles and the tools, which we can add to, and share this knowledge.  

 Notes for active participants

Open session can include additional contributions from speakers either in a formal or informal setting, but are intended to focus on specific topics (see below) for discussions. Anyone wishing to contribute a talk (≤ 10 mins), please contact Tim or Boyko.

 Sessions and specific topics for discussions:

Session 1. Cestode life cysles – overwiew

The advantages, ethics and likelihood of experimentally deriving additional life cycles.

Session 2. Cestode life cysles – a dedicated database

Enhancing the CLC database: additions, corrections and cooperation.

Session 3. Cestode life cysles – the evolution of life cycles

Priorities for additional resolution/testing.

Session 4. Cestode life cysles – molecular methods

Agreeing to a set of tools for molecular diagnostics.