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Glite Dictionary
🌱 A plant genus 🪱 A parasitic worm
Dracunculus

Dracunculus

9.9
A thin parasitic worm like the Guinea worm that infects people and animals and causes painful blisters
  • noun
  • /ˌdrækʌŋˈkjuləs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : Dracunculus
  • Dracunculus species can cause debilitating infections in humans and animals.

Examples

  • The Dracunculus worm is known for causing severe pain in infected individuals.

  • The Dracunculus lifecycle involves both human hosts and aquatic environments.

  • A surge in Dracunculus cases prompted increased health surveillance in the region.

  • Researchers studied the life cycle of Dracunculus in coastal communities.

  • Many people in Africa suffer from the Dracunculus infection each year.

  • The Dracunculus worm can inflict painful ulcers on the skin of infected individuals.

  • In many developing countries, efforts to eradicate the Dracunculus infection are ongoing.

Compounds

Dracunculus medinensis
  • Specialized
9.9

A worm that lives under people's skin and causes Guinea worm disease

Dracunculus vulgaris
  • Specialized
9.9

A plant with a large dark purple flower that smells very bad, called dragon arum

Artemisia dracunculus
  • Specialized
6.9

A perennial herb with a strong smell called tarragon used to flavor food

Surface Forms

Dracunculus singular
Dracunculi plural

Etymology

Dracunculus comes from the Latin root draco ('dragon') plus the small ending -unculus, so it literally means 'little dragon'. People used this name for the Guinea worm because the long parasite that comes out of the skin looked like a small, scary dragon, so the name fits the worm.