Parasitology, Wonder Girls & Spectacle!

Hi everyone!

I just thought I’d drop a line in the blog while taking a break from studying for my two parasitology lab tests this week. It’s been pretty grueling for me, mostly because we’re having two tests back to back and I’m really worried that I won’t be fully prepared by the time the tests come up. As a matter of fact, I’m still in the midst of finishing up some flash cards for the exams, in which I’m about two-thirds of the way though. But I’ve been at this for hours, so let me take a quick bit of time to relax.

During my breaks today (which I guiltily admit that there were many of) I’ve been hanging out at an international forum called Spectacle!, which is devoted to the Wonder Girls. If you haven’t noticed from my previous posts already, I’ve been kinda obsessed with the group since I’ve downloaded their album. I don’t know why, but I’ve always been a fan of pop-music, but especially interested in Asian pop-music. I remember back to the days when I was a big fan of BoA (a Korean artist who is breaking into the American music scene) and Utada Hikaru (a Japanese girl, who graduated from Columbia University and went back to her country to become a pop-star). Now there seems to be a Wonder Girls craze, and I’m caught up in the rush.

I’ve made a couple of new friends at Spectacle!, many of whom I was pleasantly surprised to learn were located in the Philippines. There are apparently a lot of fans like me here, and it’s been nice getting to talk to some of them.

If you guys are a fan of K-pop and happen to be located in the Philippines, I wanted to get this article out to you. Click here to read it. It’s a little exciting, and the prospect of bringing some beloved K-pop starts for a national concert would be totally sweet. Not only would it keep the Korean-Filipino relations strong, it would allow us all located in the Philippines to actually go and see some of our favorite stars. A lot of my friends here are K-pop fans, and I guess it’s not surprising since our countries are so close to each other. The influx and exchange of cultural ideas such as music were bound to entice us at some point. So basically if there’s enough demand, famous K-pop stars might be able to come and grace us with their presence for an awesome concert. I would love to see BoA, 2PM, Big Bang, f(x), 4 Minute and of course the Wonder Girls come for a national concert. The best part of it would be that it would be this November… a time coming up where I’d have a little more free time than I have now. I would totally buy a ticket! So if any of you are in the Philippines and want your favorite K-pop starts to come on over make your voices heard! I know there are plenty of you out there.

Ah… okay. I guess I’m a little too big of a fan, but seriously listening to K-pop music has been getting me through this studying. I’m off to finish up these flash cards, and then I’ll be reading my laboratory manual some more. Then hopefully off to bed. Guys, wish me luck!

And shoutouts to the Wonder Girls, Spectacle! and all the other K-pop stars who have inadvertently been keeping me sane these past few days. Kamsahamnida!

A Parasitology Lesson

So I’m done studying for the Parasitology laboratory exam that I have tomorrow (or should I say later today! It’s morning here already… =P). To be specific, I don’t only study parasites in my VPAR 131 class. The class is actually entitled Veterinary Entomology & Protozoology. So not only do I have to learn about the different types of parasites that affect different species of animals; I also have to learn about what they particularly transmit and what diseases they may cause.

So here are some interesting things I’ve learned from the 13 lab exercises that I’ve pored over. I’ll give you all one item per exercise.

1. Insect Morphology – The cockroach is a good specimen to study general insect anatomy since its morphology has stayed relatively primitive and therefore basic throughout the years. This serves as a good starting off point when first learning about parasitology.
2. Mosquitoes – Anopheles spp. has spotted wings and Aedes spp. is known as the “Tiger Mosquito” due to its distinct banded legs.
3. Sandflies, Biting Midges & Blackflies – All of these are small flies measuring 1-5mm long. That means they are able to bypass regular mosquito nets and fit through those tiny holes!
4. Houseflies, Stableflies and Buffaloflies – Musca domestica has 4 solid bands on its thorax, has a 3-segmented antenna, no maxilla and mandible and constantly regurgitates on every food source it lands on. Gross!
5. Tabanids or Horseflies – Chrysops spp. has two common species, C. dispar and C. signifer. One can be distinguished from the other since C. dispar has an inverted-V marking on its dorsal abdomen, while C. signifer has a ring-like marking on the dorsum of the abdomen.
6. Myiasis Flies – In Sarcophaga spp., males can be distinguished from females grossly by looking looking for very prominent, bright red genitalia (the hypopygium) on its posterior end.
7. Larvae of Other Myiasis Flies – In Hypoderma spp., there is an absence of oral hooks and the presence of flat tubercles and small spines on all segments except the last one in H. lineatum and the last two in H. bovis.
8. Posterior Stigmal Plates of Myiasis-Causing Larvae – In examining stigmal plates, one should examine the shape and distance between them, the shape, number and orientation of spiracular slits, the degree of sclerotization and completeness of the peritreme ring and the character of the buttons. (This is kind of funny to me because stigmal plates are basically the “ass prints” of these insects. Ha!)
9. Hippoboscid Flies – Pseudolynchia canariensis (the pigeon louse fly) is the intermediate host of Haemoproteus columbae, a blood protozoan of pigeon and the causative agent of pigeon malaria.
10. Bedbugs and Kissing Bugs – The common bed bug (Cimex spp.) females have a copulatory orifice that contains two organs: the outer organ of Ribaga and an inner organ of Berlese.
11. Fleas – The flea Xenopsylla cheopsis (rat flea) was responsible for helping transmit the Bubonic Plague in man since it was a mechanical vector of Pasteurella (Yersinia) pestis.
12. Sucking Lice of Mammals (Suborder Anoplura) – Family Haematopinidae has paratergal plates and all pairs of legs are equal in size. This is not the case with Family Linognathidae.
13. Chewing (Biting) Lice of Mammals (Suborder Mallophaga) – In Subfamily Amblycera, Heterodoxus longitarsus stands out since its head is triangular. This louse affects dogs and wallabys.

Yeah, pretty interesting huh? There were a lot more cool things that I’ve learned about these parasites in the course, but I’m a little tired and it’s 1:24 in the morning. I have to wake up for my 9am Pathology lab later so I’m going to hit the sack.

I hope you enjoyed this little lesson in Parasitology! Now off to bed for me!