Medicinal Leech
The medicinal leech (Hirudo medicinalis) is a freshwater bloodsucking annelid used in medicine for thousands of years. It is regulated under CITES and was cleared by the US FDA in 2004 as a medical device.
The medicinal leech (Hirudo medicinalis) is a freshwater bloodsucking annelid used in medicine for thousands of years. It is regulated under CITES and was cleared by the US FDA in 2004 as a medical device.
๐งฌ Field Guide Specimen: Open Medicinal Leech in the CRV Science Field Guide to log the specimen, see its place among the Lophotrochozoa lineages in the Cladogram Explorer, and test your recall in the Red List conservation game.
Anticoagulant Saliva: What Is Hirudin?
The leech's saliva contains hirudin, a protein that blocks thrombin and keeps blood from clotting while it feeds. The compound, along with other bioactive molecules, inspired anticoagulant drugs.
Modern Uses
Surgeons use leeches after reattaching fingers or transferring tissue, to relieve pooling of blood in veins until new vessels grow. The animal bites with three jaws bearing rows of tiny teeth, leaving a Y-shaped mark.
A Segmented Worm
Leeches are annelids in the class Clitellata, like earthworms, with a fixed number of body segments and a simple but well-studied nervous system that neuroscientists have used to map neuron circuits.
Medicinal Leech at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Hirudo medicinalis |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Annelida |
| Class | Clitellata |
| Subclass | Hirudinea |
| Field Guide group | Lophotrochozoa: Worms, Shells & Allies |
| Diagnostic feature (Field Guide) | Anterior and posterior suckers, three bladed jaws secreting the anticoagulant hirudin, and a body built of many repeated ring units. |
| IUCN Red List status | Near Threatened (NT), assessed 2014 |
| Class | Clitellata |
| Trade status | CITES Appendix II |