Tapeworm Fossil: First-Ever Evidence of Remains of the Ancient Parasite Discovered Trapped in Amber [Study]

Tapeworms have been upsetting the stomachs of animals for around 100 million years, and these parasites survive by using other organisms as their host.

Up until now, these ribbon-like worms have also been found inside human guts and intestines, where these parasitic animals feed off the nutrients we eat. While the general nature posed by these worms is parasitic, they can still pose very serious diseases to humans.

Despite knowledge of the ancient lineage of tapeworms, scientists had not found any fossil evidence of its prehistoric existence until recently. According to a new study, an international team of researchers led by China made the first-ever evidence of a tapeworm fossil trapped in amber in Myanmar.

In particular, recent research discovered the remains of a marine tapeworm inside an amber from the Cretaceous period.

First Tapeworm Fossil Found

(Photo : Photo by Pavel Polívka on Unsplash)

Findings of the first-ever evidence of a partial tapeworm fossil were published in the journal Geology on March 22. The international research team discovered a partial body of the worm preserved in mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber.

The discovery was made in the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar, which is believed to have formed over a prehistoric coastline. Furthermore, the specimen could be the most potential body fossil of a flatworm.

According to the researchers involved in the study, the fossil appears to be a "tentacle" that is present in today's living marine tapeworms that infect elasmobranch marine animals like rays and sharks. The team theorizes that the fossil belonged to a tapeworm that infected an elasmobranch host that was stranded on a beach in ancient Myanmar, according to reports.

Then, the host creature was bitten by a terrestrial predator or scavenger. During the process, the tapeworm's tentacle may had been pulled and got stuck in resin from a nearby plant. In addition, the authors of the study described the fossil to be displaying unique external and internal features that resemble tentacles.

In the past, tapeworm fossils are extremely rare due to the soft tissues of the animals, according to Wang Bo, the study's lead researcher.

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Tapeworm Infection

Most tapeworm species belong to the subclass Eucestoda under the class Cestoda, which includes parasitic worms in the flatworm phylum. In general, the parasitic worms can both live and feed inside the human intestine as mentioned earlier, causing a tapeworm infection. One of the most common health effects posed by tapeworm-borne diseases is digestive problems, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This parasitic infection caused by tapeworms on humans is called taeniasis, which can be brought by some tapeworm species like beef tapeworm (Taenia saginata), pork tapeworm (Taenia solium), and Asian tapeworm (Taenia asiatica). The CDC says that taeniasis can be detected from the presence of proglottids or tapeworm segments, specifically through the anus and in the feces.