Onchocerca is a genus of parasitic roundworm. It contains one human parasite – '' Onchocerca volvulus'' – which is responsible for the neglected disease

Onchocerciasis Onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, is a disease caused by infection with the parasitic worm ''Onchocerca volvulus''. Symptoms include severe itching, bumps under the skin, and blindness. It is the second-most common cause of blindne ...

, also known as "river blindness" because the infected humans tend to live near rivers where host black flies live. Over 40 million people are infected in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

, and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

."Medical Microbiology"
, Indiana State University. Accessed 14 February 2008. Other species affect cattle, horses, etc.

List of species

*'' Onchocerca armillata'' *'' Onchocerca cervicalis'' *'' Onchocerca dukei'' *'' Onchocerca fasciata'' *'' Onchocerca flexuosa'' *'' Onchocerca gibsoni'' *'' Onchocerca gutturosa'' *'' Onchocerca jakutensis'' *'' Onchocerca linealis'' *'' Onchocerca lupi'' *'' Onchocerca ochengi'' *'' Onchocerca ramachandrini'' *'' Onchocerca tubingensis'' *'' Onchocerca volvulus''

References

Parasitic nematodes of mammals Spirurida Rhabditida genera {{Rhabditida-stub