Paper II
2022 October (Supplementary) (2010 Scheme) · 40 marks · 120 min

Question

Draw and label Hook Worm Ova.

Q72 marksShort Notes

Answer

A labelled diagram cannot be rendered in this text-based answer; the description below covers the key structural/labelling features.

Hookworm ovum (Ancylostoma duodenale/Necator americanus — morphologically indistinguishable between the two species):

  • Shape: oval to elliptical.
  • Shell: thin, smooth, colourless/transparent (non-bile-stained), doubly refractile.
  • Contents: typically contains a developing embryo at the 4–8-cell cleavage stage when passed in fresh stool.
  • Size: approximately 60 μm × 40 μm.
  • A clear space is visible between the developing embryo and the egg shell — a useful labelling point.

Clinical/diagnostic note: since the two hookworm species’ eggs are essentially identical microscopically, species-level identification requires examination of adult worm mouthparts (buccal capsule) or larval culture, not egg morphology alone.

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