PetriKey

Parasite

Ascaris lumbricoides

Large intestinal nematode

AS-kuh-ris lum-brih-KOY-deez

parasitehelminthnematodeeggintestinal

High-yield clue

Large roundworm + thick mammillated egg + lung migration vocabulary.

Overview

A large roundworm used to teach nematode egg vocabulary, intestinal obstruction concepts, and lung-migration lifecycle terms.

Classification

  • Helminth
  • Nematode
  • Intestinal roundworm

Lab & identification clues

  • Ova/parasite egg vocabulary
  • Mammillated egg morphology
  • Adult worm term recognition

Associations

  • Intestinal obstruction vocabulary
  • Eosinophilia concept
  • Soil-transmitted helminth framing

Commonly confused with

  • Hookworm
  • Strongyloides
  • Taenia species

Your notes

Original student-study summary. Sources checked: OpenStax Microbiology 2e, NCBI Bookshelf Medical Microbiology, and CDC topic pages where applicable; reviewed 2026-06. Educational only; no diagnosis, treatment, dosing, or specimen-handling guidance.

OpenStax: Microbiology 2e organism classification foundationssourceNCBI Bookshelf: Medical Microbiology organism chapterssourceCDC: CDC disease and public-health topic pagessource