The first part of this class will briefly introduce basic concepts and terminology to discuss parasites, vectors, and the (human) host and their relationship to each other. We will then explore a number of important diseases and the very diverse set of helminths and protozoa causing them. We will highlight critical aspects of the biology of parasitism and parasitic disease as we go along. The lectures aim to span the entire field ranging from the molecular biology of the parasite to the implementation of control programs in the field.

The class will be held on a Tuesday/Thursday schedule from 9:30-10:45 a.m. in room 175 of the Coverdell Center. Grading for this class is A-F. There will be two written exams and a cummulative final. All academic work must meet the standards contained in “A Culture of Honesty.” Students are responsible for informing themselves about those standards before performing any academic work. More detailed information about academic honesty can be found at: http://www.uga.edu/ovpi/honesty/acadhon.htm Attendance will be taken each class, and students may not miss more than three classes. The course syllabus is a general plan for the course; deviations announced to the class by the instructor may be necessary.

Contacts: Dr. Boris Striepen, striepen@cb.uga.edu; Dr. Silvia Moreno, smoreno@cb.uga.edu; Roxana Cintron, rcintron@uga.edu

Check out the "Global Health: Voices from the Vanguard" lecture series.

Course Evaluation: Follow this link to (http://eval.franklin.uga.edu) to evaluate this class. You will have to log on with your MyID and you should find access to the form for this class (let me know if you have problems and I double check). Please note that this site will close down on April 30, so if you want to evaluate the course best do it immediately.

pdf & ppt & Script

CDC Division of Parasitic Diseses (Images, disease info, diagnostics)
WHO-TDR Media (Images, Video clips etc.)

Check out the paper on human & louse evolution at PLoS:
Genetic Analysis of Lice Supports Direct Contact between Modern and Archaic Humans

CDC fact sheets on lice

Movie of tick feeding (courtesy of Dr. Glen Needham, OHSU)

pdf & ppt & Script

Watch the schistosomiasis TV production Dr. Moreno showed in class

Schistosoma life cycle animation at the Wellcome Trust web site

More detail on the various uses of C. elegans in modern biology & medicine (somebody asked in particular for info on the Dauer larva)

Find extensive information on the biology, epidemiology and history of trichinellosis at Trichinella.org

Hookworm infection

Immunemodulation by worms and hygiene hypothesis

Don't try this at home but wait for science to settle the effectiveness and risks: Attempts of self cure by worm infection

Watch video productions on onchocerciasis & lymphatic filariasis and the community centered control programs at this WHO site

Some answers to specific questions that came up in or after the lecture: How long does Onchocerca survive within the human host? Microfilaria: 6-30 months, macrofilaria: 10-15 years. Why do the L1/L2 seek out the flight muscle? They actually develop intracellularly somewhat like the trichinella larva and depend on the large syncytial cells of the musle. Can microfilaria exit the onchocercoma after fibrin deposition around it? Yes, they do so for years. Click here for an image providing additional detail & illustration on the whereabouts and wanderings of the various Onchocerca larvae.

6 pm, Chapel, North campus,Voices from the Vanguard lecture by the director of the Carter Center neglected disease erradication program Dr. Frank Richards: Building grassroots initiatives to battle neglected diseases

Review article on toxoplasmosis in Lancet.

Good review article on apicomplexan invasion. To see movies again go to Dr. Ward's webstite. View animations of invasion and the gliding machine.

Check out the Border Cowboys. Animation of host cell invasion by the Theileria sporozoite.