Cestodes

• Cestodes

  Parasites classified under the subkingdom Metazoa, phylum Platyhelminthes
• Cestodes are considered as primitive worms
• Cestodes do not possess a digestive system nor a nervous system
• Cestodes absorb nutrients and eliminate waste products through their outer surface called the tegument
• Cestodes

  • Commonly known as tapeworms
  • Flat
  • Consist of three distinct regions: head, neck, and body (proglottids)
• Head of cestodes

  Contains an organ of attachment called the scolex
• Scolex


  May consist of either hooks, suckers, or sucking grooves
• Rosellum


  A fleshy extension of the scolex to which hooks may be attached
• The body is divided into multiple segments called proglottids
• Proglottids


  Segments of the tapeworm's body
• Strobila

  A series of proglottids
• All cestodes are hermaphroditic (self-fertilizing)
• Neck


  Region of growth that connects the head to the body of the worm