The intermediate hosts for Taenia saginata and T.
solium are cattle and pigs (and humans for the latter), respectively.
In vitro-hatched (but not activated) oncospheres of both Asian
Taenia (T. saginata asiatica, a new subspecies of T.
saginata or T. asiatica, a new species) and T. solium
injected subcutaneously into the backs of mice with severe combined immunodeficiency
(scid) developed into fully matured cysticerci. Five-month-old
metacestodes of Asian Taenia had no hooklets and were bigger in
size than those previously reported and similar to those of T. saginata.
Their morphology suggested that the cysticerci were more advanced than
those in the intermediate host animals. It is suggested that scid
mice are valuable experimental animal models for studying human taeniid
cestode infections.