Not all eggs are the same—uncovering a tropical parasite's secret weapons

A team of scientists from the Faculty of Science at Charles University has achieved a major breakthrough in research into schistosomiasis, a serious tropical disease affecting more than 250 million people worldwide. Using advanced laser microdissection, the researchers have, for the first time, captured and analyzed proteins secreted by the eggs of the human blood fluke Schistosoma mansoni directly within infected tissues of a living organism, rather than under artificial laboratory conditions.