A parasite is an organism that lives in a host and takes its nourishment from that host. In the GI tract, their presence can manifest in many ways. The main classes of parasites include protozoa, roundworms, tapeworms, and flukes. Whenever Patti & Michael have questions about microbiology, they turn to Jim Kelton who has been part of the microbiology department at Genova for nearly 20 years. In this episode, we get Jim’s take on parasitosis and clarify the methodologies for detecting parasites.
“We developed fire back in the Stone Ages for a reason, and one of them was to cook fish.” – Jim Kelton
Today on The Lab Report:
3:40 Scienceness, Technicology, and Machine-a-mechanics: Jim Kelton is back!
4:40 Prevalence of parasitosis and the question of underdiagnosis
7:05 Are there commensal parasites?
11:40 Using different kinds of PCR to assess parasites
15:25 “But I saw a worm in my stool, and your lab missed it!”
17:05 Differentiating different ova/eggs
18:50 Microscopy and quantification scales
20:50 Sushi: Friend or foe
23:00 Parting thoughts and fun facts about parasites
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