What causes muscle tapeworm cysts?
• This condition is caused by the larvae of the tapeworm Taenia krabbei. • Lifecycle: The tapeworm needs two hosts: a carnivore (e.g., wolf or dog) and an herbivore (e.g., caribou). The adult tapeworm grows and lays eggs in the intestines of the carnivore. Eggs come out in the carnivore’s droppings and contaminate plants that are eaten by the herbivore. The eggs hatch into larvae that travel in the blood to other parts of the herbivore’s body where they form cysts in the muscle. Carnivores become infected when they eat meat with cysts.
