Identification of helminth eggs in coprolithes from the Neolithic age

AbstractThree neolithic sites, one in France (Chalain, in the Jura Mountains) and two in Switzerland (Arbon, close to the Bodensee, and Concise, close to Lake of Neuchatel) were submitted to palaeoparasitological studies. Numerous well preserved eggs of parasitic intestinal worms were discovered and examined from the point of view of morphology and morphometry. Five parasites could thus be identified: Trichuris sp., Fasciola sp., Diphyllobotbrium sp., Capillaria sp., Dioctophymus sp.Special attention was paid to the latter two as they pose the question of the emergence and disappearance of the corresponding diseases in the prehistoric and historic periods. These two parasitoses (Capillariosis and Dioctophymosis) have now become anecdotal phenomena in modern European countries. However, as the helminth eggs are often found in association with pollens and spores, we can assume that the latter were used as part of a medical treatment