dixonpete
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For those curious, the ongoing cost of doing an incubation is less than a dollar. That's for the consumables such as bleach, paper towels and the coffee filters. The jars, pipettes, and Petri dishes are reusable. The biggest cost involved in incubation is of course the microscope, but with care that item should last a lifetime.
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John Scott reacted to a blog entry:
A two for four incubation
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Last week I set four small jars going, and today I gave them a look. Two of the jars were completely devoid of larvae. The other two were "B-" results, enough for inoculation but would require a fair amount of work collecting the larvae as the observed quantity was low. Think maybe 5% of best jars I've seen so far. I'm becoming convinced this is truly...
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Rating of 4 jars for this incubation round
dixonpete commented on dixonpete's blog entry in Pete Dixon
I should have added that before the stool is smeared on the coffee filter, it must be thoroughly moistened with mineral water. This is an important step. There have been reports on the Helminthic Therapy Incubation Forum that without doing that, the larvae can't get out of the stool and down to the water at the bottom of the jar. -
Rating of 4 jars for this incubation round
dixonpete commented on dixonpete's blog entry in Pete Dixon
Seven days in the mark from the inoculation is becoming much less noticeable. I expect by ten days all that will be left will be some slight redness. I had worried that the pressure bandage would crush the larvae but apparently they minded it not at all. The wrap made keeping the bandage in place much easier. Highly recommended. -
Yesterday I inoculated myself with 25 Necator americanus larvae from the small red jar. There were so many larvae, all I had to do was find a couple of drops that had the number of larvae I was looking for and pipette them onto the bandage. No messing with sucking up individual larvae and placing them in a tube. Much quicker, and why having a large crop is...
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The temperature was cooler for a stretch here near Detroit, so a week ago I decided to have another crack at incubating. As luck would have it, a day after I set up my jars, the temperature shot right back up again. I don't have A/C in my apartment, so I figured I had just wasted my time, but this morning when I checked one of the small jars I found...
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John Scott reacted to a blog entry:
Incubation failure
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I followed the same technique I used last time that yielded such huge results, but this time basically I got zilch from two small jars. A few corpses and several uninspired zombie looking larvae moping around under my microscope's lens. Not enough to consider spending the time trying to get a harvest for an inoculation. The only thing different this...
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A huge failure and a huge success with hookworm incubation
dixonpete posted a blog entry in Pete Dixon
I had an interesting experience today. I set up 3 practice jars 8 days ago. The first of the large jars was ok, maybe a little light in larvae. The second large jar was BARREN! I think I saw one larva in my sample. The third, small jar was a surprise though, it was booming! Squirming larvae hanging from the chandeliers, partying like it was 1999. Huge... -
John Scott reacted to a comment on a blog entry:
The crux of hookworm incubation
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John has compiled a number of HT related books in the Wiki: https://www.helminthictherapywiki.org/wiki/Helminthic_therapy_in_the_media#Books.
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John Scott reacted to a blog entry:
The crux of hookworm incubation
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John Scott reacted to a blog entry:
Other Helminthic Therapy blogs
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Very few people seem to be making money with helminths and I agree, selling 10 might be an ambitious number for that book! The majority of people I know involved with HT are simply converts who have been saved from grievous conditions and are trying to help others. I don't talk about the other 3 helminths used in HT because I don't have any experience...
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When I first got into hookworms to treat my several severe GI immune conditions, I was confused and filled with trepidation. Six years later, it all seems pretty simple, but I suppose perhaps everything is like that when you are starting out. The first step is to purchase larvae from a provider listed in the Helminthic Therapy Wiki and when they arrive...
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I bought a doohickey to attach my cell phone to my microscope
dixonpete commented on dixonpete's blog entry in Pete Dixon
In case it isn't obvious, the cell phone sits inside the device and held in place by a spring. Above the holder you can see sort of a hole. That's where it is positioned on the microscope eyepiece. The screw is then tightened to keep it in place. The next trick is to swivel the cell phone such that the camera is looking down the microscope. You can't... -
I bought a doohickey to attach my cell phone to my microscope
dixonpete posted a blog entry in Pete Dixon
It took watching a YouTube video to figure out how to use it, and it's a bit touchy, but it does allow me to take pics and video of what I see under the microscope. The device came from AliExpress and costs under $5. Here's a video of a particularly active larva. Let me know in the comments if the link isn't working. This larva was from... -
Day 2, the day after incubation, I found 1 inactive larvae after sampling both jars. By sampling I mean inspecting about 15 mls of water extracted from each jar. Day 3, nothing. Day 4, I saw one larva in each jar. Day 5, I estimate there were 15–20 larvae in each jar. Enough to inoculate. So I guess that's the answer. 5 days. Waiting l...
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I was in a bit of a rush and didn't finesse the job as well as I would have liked. I ended up using too much stool in one jar and not enough on the other. The overweight one might tear through the threads and sink into the water, and the light one might not have enough stool to generate many larvae. This experience tells me there's some technique to this...