Zoology Assigment : 05

Acanthocephala
 ACANTHOCEPHALA

 INTRODUCTION
Acanth is a Latin word for ‘spine’ thorny, ‘cephala‘ means ‘head’
Acanthocephalans, commonly called spiny headed or prickly headed worms, are
necrotrophic worms that live as grown-ups only in the vertebrate's small digestive
system and display a roundabout life cycle, which uses an arthropod transitional
host. Acanthocephalans utilize their retractable and invaginable proboscis to attach
to the digestive system of their host.

 Characteristics
Following are the characteristics of Phylum Acanthocephala.

1. Symmetry
Acanthocephalas attain bilteral symmtry.
2. Nature
These are parasitic in nature.
3. Species
Acanthocephala is a medium sized phylum of generally little and consistently
parasitic (in the guts of vertebrates) worms. More than 1,000 have been found in the
gut of a solitary seal.
4. Size
Acanthocephalus vary from 25mm to 1 inch long. Some species are even 1 meter
long.
6 . Body Layers
Body in excess of two cell layer thick, with tissues and organs.
Epidermis is a thick syncytial epithelium, with a very much created web of protein
fiber that help and hardens the integument with cuticle absent.

7. Body Cavity
These organisms have pseudocoelom body cavity. i-e body cavity is not completely
lined with mesodermal cells.
8. Circulatory system
they have no proper circulatory or respiratory organs. Everything simply passes in
and out through their cuticles. They have a basic sensory system, containing a
solitary ventral ganglion in the proboscis and a couple of nerves.
9. Nervous System
Their nervous system is consist of brain and two lateral nerves.
10. Digestive system
Acanthocephalus have no digestive system. They take food and nutrients from their
host leakage dietry contents.
11. Reproduction System
They are dioecious.Acanthocephala have prominent reproduction system. Female
contains ovaries for the production of eggs and male produces sperms in testes
which later transfers to penis.

 Body structure
Body of the Acanthocephala includes:
1. Probsci with Hooks
2. Neck
3. Trunk
4. Gonopore or Bursa

Acanothocephala are cylindrical in shape. The anterior part of body is consist of

proboscis which help them in the attachment with host’s digestive system. Lemnisci
(club shape structure) hangs at the side of proboscis. This structure helps in the fluid
transportaion and hydrostatic pressure.
Just below the proboscis, there’s neck which connects with the trunk. These
organism do not have circulatory, digestive or respiratory system. There’s this
structure called gonopore at the other end of the body. They lack alimentary canal
and peritoneum Absorption and distribution of burgers is done by two longitudinal
vessels present in body.When these muscles contract, hydrostatic pressure in fluid
reservoirs lemnisci cause the proboscis to evert.Nervous system consist of brain it
includes two nerves as well .The cerebral ganglion, also known as the ganglion, is a
wide cellular mass located within the proboscis receptacle's ventral walls.
Macracanthorhynchus, Hamanniella, and Bolbosoma all have a core fibrous mass
enclosed by ganglion cells, with 86 in Macracanthorhynchus, 80 in Hamanniella, and
73 in Bolbosoma  . Their trunk is mostly consist of reproductive organs. Female
consist of ovaries which produces eggs and male consist of testes in which sperms
are produce and then these sperms are transfered into the penis. In male, bursa is
present at the end which contains penis. Male usually have two testis(one behind
the other). Male also consist of some glands which secrete some substances. These
secretion helps them to plug into female genital pore.During copulation, the male
injects seminal fluid into the bursa from its seminal vesicle. When the Saefftigen's
pouch, a muscular sac attached to the lacunar system, contracts, the copulatory
bursa everts due to hydrostatic pressure. During copulation, the female is held in
place by the outline of the copulatory bursa. The penis, which stretches into the
male's everted bursa, releases sperm into the genital pore.The male's gland
secretions, which are expelled by the penis, cap the female's posterior end,
preventing sperm loss and potentially preventing eventual mating with other males.

 Life Cycle
The host vertebrate typically got contaminated by ingesting an infective
hatchling, called a cystacanth, contained inside the infected host. Inside the digestive
system, the dioecious worms develop, mate, and upon patency ova containing the
incipient organism known as an acanthor are passed in the host's toxic exceretion.
The host gets attacked by ingesting ova in fecally defiled soil, food, water, or by
taking care of directly on the toxic substances (feaces). The ovum hatches inside the
digestive tract of the arthropod middle of the road have, delivering the acanthor that
utilizes spines to enter the digestive tract. Inside the body cavity of the arthropod,
the worm forms into the infective cystacanth. Known middle hosts for those with
earthly life cycles incorporate bugs (particularly Coleoptera and Orthoptera),
earthbound isopods, or millipedes as moderate hosts. Different decapods and
different shellfish fill in as moderate hosts for those with sea-going life cycles.There
has been no evidence that Acanthocephala species need more than an arthropod
intermediate host to infect vertebrates. However, in certain acanthocephalan life
cycles, another vertebrate serves as a bridge between the intermediate host and the
vertebrate defending host . In such cases, known as paratenic has, the worm enters
the intestinal divider and restricts in the mesenteries or viscera, where it stays in the
infective cystacanth stage. Despite the fact that paratenic has have not been shown
to be physiologically needed by the worms to accomplish development, they might
be needed to finish move of worms from middle hosts to the trophic level at which
the last host takes care of. For example, insectivores, vixens might be used by the
agents of the sort Centrorhynchus to work with the exchange of worms from an
arthropod moderate host to the flying predators that fill in as conclusive host.
Postcyclic transmission may likewise happen, which alludes to the exchange of
grown-up worms when one vertebrate host eaten by another. In certain examples
the presence of acanthocephalans may prompt change in conduct showed by the
intermediate host making it more helpless to being preyed on, in this manner
working with transmission. For example, cockroaches contaminated with the
acanthocephalan moniliformis move more gradually than do their uninfected
partners.

 Classification:
Acanthophelas are classified into three types
1. Archiacanthocephala
2. Eoacanthocephala
3. Palaeacanthocephala

 Archiacanthocephala
These are the parasites of birds and mammals.They attach with the help of probsci
to their hosts. Females are 3 to 4 times larger than males. They show attachment
with the help of probsci.Protonephridia are present in this class.
Example : Gigantorhynchus, Macracanthorhynchus

 Eoacanthocephala
These are parasitic to fishes and reptiles. Spines on probsci show radial
arrangement.Protonephridia are absent in this class.
Example: Neoechinorhynchus, Octospimfer

 Palaeacanthocephala
These are the parasites of fishes,birds and mammals. The animal of this class has
spines on trunk. Probsci are arranged in a row. They lack protonephridia.
Example: Acanthocephalus, Polymorphus

 Fun facts
 Acanthocephala are closely related to Rotifers.
 They belong from kingdom Eumetazoa.
 They have proper reproduction system and complex life cycle.
 They have 22 number of families.
 Acanthocephala are in a variety of colors. Some are colourless.
 There is no fossil record of Acanthocephals.
 They can inflict local damage to their vertebrate hosts' intestines, but they are
rarely the cause of serious injury or death to man.
 They can cause bacterial infections by serving as an enterance point for them.