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[Baylisascaris procyonis]

The definitive hosts for Baylisascaris spp. are primarily carnivores, with one species known to infect rodents.  In humans, the larvae of B. procyonis can be found in many organs, including the liver, heart, lungs and brain (visceral larval migrans, or VLM) as well as the eye (ocular larval migrans, or OLV and neuroretinitis).

A	B

A: Cross-sections of larvae of B. columnaris (a skunk parasite) in the brain of a laboratory-infected mouse.  The larval morphology and microscopic manifestations would be similar with B. procyonis in human tissue.  Image taken at 400x magnification.
B: Higher magnification (1000x oil) of a cross-section of B. columnaris from the same specimen as Figure A.  Notice the prominent alae (green arrows), excretory columns (red arrows) and multinucleate intestinal cells (blue arrow).

C

C: Cross-sections of larvae of B. columnaris in muscle of a laboratory-infected mouse.  The larval morphology and microscopic manifestations would be similar with B. procyonis in human tissue.  Image taken at 400x magnification.