Brief SummaryRead full entry Schistosoma mansoni is one of the
three main Schistosoma trematode flatworms that infect humans
and cause schistosomiasis (=bilharziasis), the other two being
S. haematobium and S. japonicum (in some regions, S. mekongi and
S. intercalatum also infect humans and cause schistosomiasis).
Other schistosome species, which parasitize birds and non-human
mammals, can cause cercarial dermatitis in humans. The life
cycle of S. mansoni and related schistosomes is complex. Eggs
are eliminated from a human host with feces or urine. Under
optimal conditions, the eggs hatch and release miracidia, which
swim and penetrate specific snail intermediate hosts. The life
stages within the snail include two generations of sporocysts
and the production of cercariae. Upon release from the snail,
the infective cercariae swim, penetrate the skin of the human
host, and shed their forked tail, becoming schistosomulae (human
contact with water is thus necessary for infection by
schistosomes). The schistosomu