What is the primary role of a paratenic host in the Acanthocephala life cycle?
Answer
To ingest an infected intermediate host and act as a bridge toward the definitive host.
Paratenic hosts, also known as transport hosts, represent an optional but significant bridge in the complex life cycles of some acanthocephalans. These organisms ingest an intermediate host that already harbors the developing parasite (the cystacanth stage) but do not permit the parasite to mature fully or complete its development. By consuming infected prey, the transport host effectively moves the parasite closer to the true definitive host, which then consumes the transport host, thereby completing the essential step toward obtaining the mature, egg-producing adult stage.
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