A method for determining the biological activity of embryonated Trichuris eggsisdescribed, in which at least one of the following determinations is carriedout:a) Determination and/or confirmation of the stage of the embryonal developmentofhelminth eggs with the aid of quantitative PCR analysis by using suitablemarkersequences for ascertaining the copy number of the genomic DNA,b) Determination of the metabolic activity of embryonated helminth eggs bymeans ofbiochemical and/or molecular biological methods,c)Determination of the inducibility of gene expression in embryonated helmintheggs,d) Microscopic determination of the motility of helminth larvae in the eggover longperiods of observation after pre-incubation at increased temperatures and/ore) Determination of the hatching rate of Trichuris larvae in a laboratoryanimal,wherein the intact embryonated eggs recovered from the contents of theintestineare quantified compared to an internal standard.
