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''Echinostoma'' is a genus of trematode parasites, which can infect both humans and other animals. These intestinal flukes have a three-host life cycle with snails or aquatic organisms as intermediate hosts, and a variety of animals, including humans, as their definitive hosts. ''Echinostoma'' infect the gastrointestinal tract of humans, and can cause a disease known as echinostomiasis. The parasites are spread when humans or animals eat infected raw or undercooked food, such as bivalve molluscs or fish 〔 ==Taxonomy== It has been estimated that there are between 61 and 114 species of ''Echinostoma''.〔 ''Echinostoma'' are difficult to classify and are known as a cryptic species (different lineages are considered to be the same species, due to high morphological similarity between them). Many species of ''Echinostoma'' have been re-classified several times. For example, the species now known as ''Echinostoma caproni'', was previously known by a variety of names including ''E. liei'', ''E. parasensei'' and ''E. togoensis''. Methods for classifying ''Echinostoma'' species, such as the ''Echinostoma revolutum'' group, were devised by Kanev. The ''Echinostoma'' species in this group are now classified according to their shared morphological and biological characteristics, such as the presence of 37 collar spines.〔 Molecular methods, such as sequencing mitochondrial DNA and ribosomal DNA, are also used to distinguish between species of ''Echinostoma'' as an alternative to morphological classification methods. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Echinostoma」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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