Biography about the tapeworms

Subclass of flatworms

"Tapeworm" redirects here. For other uses, see Tapeworm (disambiguation).

Eucestoda, commonly referred to as tapeworms, is the larger of the two subclasses of flatworms in the class Cestoda (the other subclass being Cestodaria).

Larvae have six posterior hooks on the scolex (head), in contrast to the ten-hooked Cestodaria.

Biography about the tapeworms in humans

All tapeworms are endoparasites of vertebrates, living in the digestive tract or related ducts. Examples are the pork tapeworm (Taenia solium) with a human definitive host, and pigs as the secondary host, and Moniezia expansa, the definitive hosts of which are ruminants.

Body structure

Adult Eucestoda have a white-opaque dorso-ventrally flattened appearance, and are elongated, ranging in length from a few millimeters (about ¼") to 25 meters (80').^[1] Almost all members, except members of the orders Caryophyllidea and Spathebothriidea, are polyzoic with repeated sets of reproductive organs down the body le