Dipylidium caninum is classified as which type of parasite?

Dipylidium caninum is classified as which type of parasite?

• A. Cestode
• B. Trematode
• C. Nematode
• D. Arthropod

Answer: (A)

Dipylidium caninum is a tapeworm, a cestode. Cestodes are long, flat, segmented parasites that attach to the intestinal lining with a scolex and absorb nutrients through their surface because they lack a true digestive system. The worm’s segmented body (proglottids) and life cycle that uses an intermediate host (such as a flea) to reach the definitive host align with cestodes. Trematodes are flukes with leaf-shaped bodies and different life cycles, nematodes are roundworms with a tubular digestive tract, and arthropods are a different phylum altogether (the fleas that transmit Dipylidium are arthropods, but the parasite itself is not). So, the correct classification is cestode.

Dipylidium caninum is a tapeworm, a cestode. Cestodes are long, flat, segmented parasites that attach to the intestinal lining with a scolex and absorb nutrients through their surface because they lack a true digestive system. The worm’s segmented body (proglottids) and life cycle that uses an intermediate host (such as a flea) to reach the definitive host align with cestodes. Trematodes are flukes with leaf-shaped bodies and different life cycles, nematodes are roundworms with a tubular digestive tract, and arthropods are a different phylum altogether (the fleas that transmit Dipylidium are arthropods, but the parasite itself is not). So, the correct classification is cestode.