Nematomorpha (sometimes called Gordiacea, and commonly known as horsehair worms) are a phylum of parasiticanimals which are morphologically and ecologically similar to nematode worms, hence the name. They are, on average, 1 metre long, and 1 to 3 millimetres in diameter. Horsehair worms can be discovered in damp areas such as watering troughs, streams, puddles, and cisterns. The adult worms are free living , but the larvae are parasitic on beetles, cockroaches, grasshoppers and crustaceans. About 320 species have been described.
Nematomorphs possess an external cuticle without cilia. Internally, they have only longitudinal muscle and a non-functional gut, with no excretory, respiratory or circulatory systems. Reproductively, they are dioecious, with the internal fertilisation of eggs that are then laid gelatinous strings.
In Spinochordodes tellinii, which has grasshoppers as its vector, the infection acts on the grasshopper's brain and causes it to seek water and drown itself, thus returning the nematomorph to water.
Highlights from the September 2008 Journal of the American Dietetic Association Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0400 (American Dietetic Association) In May 2006, an agreement was reached by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation and the American Beverage Association on voluntary sales restrictions on "competitive foods" such as soft drinks at schools. However, researchers at Pardee Rand Graduate School say limiting the availability of soft drinks at school may not be enough to affect overall consumption among elementary school children. Researchers devise means to create blood by identifying earliest stem cells Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0400 (Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions) Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered the earliest form of humanblood stem cells and deciphered the mechanism by which these embryonicstem cells replicate and grow. They also found a surprising biologicalmarker that pinpoints these stem cells, which serve as the progenitorsfor red blood cells and lymphocytes. Caltech scientists create DNA tubes with programmable sizes for nanoscale manufacturing Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0400 (California Institute of Technology) Scientists at the California Institute of Technology have developed a simple process for mass producing molecular tubes of identical -- and precisely programmable -- circumferences. The technological feat may allow the use of the molecular tubes in a number of nanotechnology applications.
404Ben Hanelt's Freshwater Nematormorphs - Research on the distribution and life cycle of freshwater nematomorphs (Phylum Nematormopha). Includes a photo gallery of Gordian worms.
Horsehair Worms in Illinois - Short article about phylum Nematomorpha, the group of invertebrates more commonly called horsehair or gordian worms. Includes a photo.
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