Diphyllobothrium latum

Diphyllobothrium latum, the fish tapeworm, was identified by the pathologist.

Infection by the fish tapeworm Diphyllobothrium latum is "common in Scandinavian countries where eating live fish is a delicacy."

Infection of humans by the broad fish tapeworm Diphyllobothrium latum occasionally causes vitamin B deficiency and, in severe cases, megaloblastic anemia.

The fish tapeworm (Diphyllobothrium latum) absorbs huge quantities of vitamin B and infested patients often have associated gastric atrophy.

The principal species causing diphyllobothriosis is Diphyllobothrium latum, known as the broad or fish tapeworm, or broad fish tapeworm.

They are usually identified by the animals they come from - for example Taenia saginata from beef, Taenia solium from pork, and Diphyllobothrium latum from fish.

A few examples are: brain parasite Flexibactor collumaris, red worm Eustrongylides tubifex, broad tapeworm Diphyllobothrium latum, and parasitic copepods Ergasilus spp.

There is no clear point in time when Diphyllobothrium latum and related species were "discovered" in humans, but it is clear that diphyllobothriasis has been endemic in human populations for a very long time.