the genus Taenia that is comprised of flat worms, many being parasitic. Tapeworm require two mammalian hosts for both transmission as well as life cycle completion. Typically transmission is as follows: egg->herbivore->carnivore where the cestode matures and releases its eggs. Infection by tapeworms in humans is caused by inadvertent consumption of eggs or larva typically found in fleas as well as undercooked meat. Infections in mammals can be life threatening if untreated. The picture to the left is of a tapeworm from a dog.Mitochondrial genomes have been found to have great impact on the science community in understanding molecular variation amongst species and have provided utility in molecular and population genetics as well as evolutionary biology.The tapeworm genus Taenia has growth to have great importance in both human and veterinary biology because of the vast diversity of the parasite. With the completions of 7 total genomes of T. multiceps, T. hydatigena and T. pisiformis scientists are able to compare and contrast variations within the genomes of the same genus. This research can help to develop genetic markers and used in what scientists are calling an "extended mitochondrial toolkit". Having completed 7 Taenia species genomes, it is possible to analyze amino acids present as well as estimate phylogenetic features for the genus which differed from previous estimates using only partial genes. With these new analyses, better molecular markers were discovered and now these mitochondrial markers are used for molecular ecology, population genetics as well as diagnostics.
