Whipworm(s) | |
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Male | |
Female | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Nematoda |
Class: | Enoplea |
Order: | Trichocephalida |
Family: | Trichuridae |
Genus: | Trichuris |
Species: | T. trichiura
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Binomial name | |
Trichuris trichiura (Linnaeus, 1771)
| |
Synonyms[1] | |
Ascaris trichiura Linnaeus, 1771 |
Trichuris trichiura, Trichocephalus trichiuris or whipworm, is a parasitic roundworm (a type of helminth) that causes trichuriasis (a type of helminthiasis which is one of the neglected tropical diseases) when it infects a human large intestine. It is commonly known as the whipworm which refers to the shape of the worm; it looks like a whip with wider "handles" at the posterior end.[2] The helminth is also known to cause rectal prolapse.