Trichinella is the genus of parasitic roundworms of the phylum Nematoda that cause trichinosis (also known as trichinellosis). Members of this genus are often called trichinella or trichina worms. A characteristic of Nematoda is the one-way digestive tract, with a pseudocoelom (body cavity made up of only an ectoderm and endoderm). Trichinella is the smallest human nematode parasite, yet it is also the largest of all intracellular parasites. Oral ingestion of larvae-contaminated tissue is the usual route of infection, but congenital and mammary transmission can occur in rats.