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PLoS Pathogens Issue Image | Vol. 2(6) June 2006

Schistosome egg excretion

A female schistosome excreting an egg through the gonopore. The female schistosome resides in a ventral groove of the male, the gynecophoric canal. The male worm sends a stimulus to regulate female-specific gene expression that in turn controls female reproductive development and subsequent egg production. Osman et al demonstrate that host TGFα can send a signal that is transduced by the schistosome TGFα pathway to regulate the expression of a Gynecophoric Canal Protein that may play a role in worm pairing that is a prerequisite for the male to send a stimulus to the female worm.

Image Credit: Photo by Ahmed Osman.

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Schistosome egg excretion

A female schistosome excreting an egg through the gonopore. The female schistosome resides in a ventral groove of the male, the gynecophoric canal. The male worm sends a stimulus to regulate female-specific gene expression that in turn controls female reproductive development and subsequent egg production. Osman et al demonstrate that host TGFα can send a signal that is transduced by the schistosome TGFα pathway to regulate the expression of a Gynecophoric Canal Protein that may play a role in worm pairing that is a prerequisite for the male to send a stimulus to the female worm.

Image Credit: Photo by Ahmed Osman.

https://doi.org/10.1371/image.ppat.v02.i06.g001