An Overview:
Phylum Platyhelminthes belongs to the kingdom Animalia. These are acoelomates, and they possess many free-living and parasitic life forms.
Dugesia, Fasciola, Schistosoma and Taenia solium are a few examples of Platyhelminthes.
Platyhelminthes are mostly endoparasitic, and only a few are free-living species. Tapeworm and Liver fluke are examples of endoparasites, which live within the host and absorb their nutrients.
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Physical Characteristics of Platyhelminthes
Platyhelminthes exhibit bilateral symmetry as their bodies can be divided into two identical halves in a single plane.
The type of body organisation present in Platyhelminthes is the organ system level of organisation. In this system level of organisation, the tissues are well-modified to develop well-defined organs that perform distinct functions.
The body of Platyhelminthes is thin, soft, leaf-like or ribbon-like.
Platyhelminthes exhibit a triploblastic level of organisation with three germ layers:
- The outermost ectoderm layer
- The innermost endoderm layer
- The middle mesoderm layer
Nervous System of Platyhelminthes
The nervous system of Platyhelminthes consists of a nerve cord growing in various directions.
Nerve nets are present in Ctenophores, Cnidarians, and Starfish, belonging to the phylum Echinodermata.
In all Platyhelminthes, the nervous system is concentrated at the head end.
Other Platyhelminthes have rings of ganglia in the head and main nerve trunks running along with their bodies.
This was a brief introduction to the nervous system of Platyhelminthes.
To know more about Platyhelminthes, their physical characteristics, classification, anatomy and important questions on Platyhelminthes, keep visiting our website, at BYJU’S Biology.
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