Trehalose and Glucose in Helminths and Other Invertebrates

Glucose and trehalose were determined in 71 species of invertebrates representing the major phyla. Glucose was estimated by a specific glucose oxidase assay, and trehalose, by equating the total carbohydrate in chromatogram eluates with glucose formed by acid hydrolysis of the carbohydrate. Parasitic nematodes in general contained more trehalose than cestodes, trematodes, and other invertebrates, with the possible exception of insects. In nematodes the glucose–trehalose ratio was usually less than one. This ratio was reversed in free-living invertebrates of marine, fresh-water, or terrestrial origin, most of which contained both carbohydrates in small amounts. Other hexoses and disaccharides were not present in detectable amounts.