Gastropod-Borne Helminths: A Look at the Snail-Parasite Interplay.

More than 300 million people suffer from a range of diseases caused bygastropod-borne helminths, predominantly flatworms and roundworms, whoselife cycles are characterized by a diversified ecology and epidemiology. Despitethe plethora of data on these parasites, very little is known of the fundamentalbiology of their gastropod intermediate hosts, or of the interactions occurring atthe snail–helminth interface. In this article, we focus on schistosomes and meta-strongylids of human and animal significance, and review current knowledge ofsnail–parasite interplay. Future efforts aimed at elucidating key elements of thebiology and ecology of the snail intermediate hosts, together with an improvedunderstanding of snail–parasite interactions, will aid to identify, plan, and developnew strategies for disease control focused on gastropod intermediate hosts.