Nippostrongylus brasiliensis (Intestinal nematode of the rat) Description Nippostrongylus brasiliensis is a gastrointestinal parasite of rats with a similar lifestyle nand morphology to the human hookworms (Necator americanus and Ancylostoma duodenale. Transmission does not require an intermediate host. Lifecycle Adult worms live in the intestine of the host and eggs are passed into the faeces. Outside the host, the eggs hatch in and the L1 larvae continue to develop. After two further moults the infective L3 stage is produced. At this stage the larvae crawl up grass stems and are able to penetrate the skin of the rodent host. The larve then migrate first to the heart, then to the lungs. After penetrating the pulmonary alveoli, the larve are ingested and ultimately reach the gastrointestinal tract where they attach to the intestinal wall developing into the fully mature adult worm. Details Total number of sequences in NEMBASE 1250 Number of NEMBASE clusters 750 Number of Libraries 3 Phylogeny Clade V Links NEMBASE Library statistics General information Life Cycle Contacts Project Information (Edinburgh) Mark Blaxter Nippostrongylus Biology Rick Maizels (Edinburgh)