Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The purpose of the research is to develop an optimal infection protocol for Tenebrio molitor beetles with Rodentolepis nana to create a convenient laboratory model of hymenolepiasis. Materials and methods. T. molitor beetle strains were maintained in the laboratory at all stages of development. The laboratory temperature range for beetles was 18.4–27.4 °C. To obtain a culture of infective R. nana eggs, mice were preinfected. Cysticercoids for infecting mice were obtained by dissecting T. molitor beetles infected with R. nana . Infection was performed within 2 hours of larval removal. A total of 38 mice were included in the experiment. Infection of 123 adult beetles of the R. nana cestode was carried out using various methods: by applying eggs and whole segments to filter paper or food; by adding feces from infected mice to a container containing the beetles; by orally administering eggs to each beetle individually using an insulin syringe. Infection was performed both after starvation and without prior starvation. Larvae were infected by adding R. nana eggs to the feed; by adding feces from infected mice to the larval container; by adding segments of the cestode to filter paper. Infected beetles and larvae were maintained both at room temperature and in a thermostat at a constant temperature of 28 °C. Necropsies were performed on days 7, 10, 14, 18, 21, and 24. Results and discussion. When beetles were infected with a pure culture of R. nana eggs, cysticercoids were not detected in any case. When beetles were infected with cestode segments after a starvation diet and maintained in a thermostat at 28 °C, cysticercoids developed in 25% of the cases. Infection of the beetle larvae was unsuccessful with any of the tested methods. In the experiment, mice were more successfully infected with R. nana cysticercoids than with invasive eggs.
Source: Russian Journal of Parasitology
Language: English
Subfield: Parasitology
Field: Immunology and Microbiology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7214033792