The Regulan bloodworm is a worm-like lifeform, native to the planet Regulus II. It is described as a soft, spineless creature that is medically useful for cleaning the lymphatic system; however, Regulan bloodworms can also infect sentient races, causing sickness and death.
The first reference to Regulan bloodworms was as an insult in the Star Trek episode "The Trouble With Tribbles," written by David Gerrold. Gerrold also wrote an episode for Star Trek: The Next Generation, tentatively titled "Blood and Fire", in which the Enterprise's crew comes across a derelict ship with a dead crew, all killed by a Regulan bloodworm infestation. The episode, which was meant to introduce a science-fiction analogue for the AIDS pandemic of the 1980s, was never produced, but a modified version was produced in the web series Star Trek: Phase II.
This two-part episode (4x04 and 4x05, released in 2008) was also entitled "Blood and Fire". In it, the Enterprise crew attempts to rescue members of a federation vessel who unknown to them have violated a 100 year quarantine on visits to the Regulus system, and subsequently were contaminated by a deadly plaque of "doomsday" Regulan bloodworms. In this episode, the creatures are seen as a universal threat to not only the Federation but also to the Klingon Empire as well. They are exposed as having been created by the Regulan civilization as a doomsday weapon, which resulted in the extinction of all life in the system. As it turns out, the covert operation of the Federation research vessel, led by an over-zealous Federation scientist, was actually designed to unleash the creatures on the Klingon Empire, causing mass genocide, while the Federation would be protected by a newly discovered cure for the infection. The analogy to the HIV virus and AIDS remains as two of the primary characters are males who were in love and had plans to marry. One, the nephew of Captain Kirk,Peter Kirk, narrowly escapes, but his husband-to-be, Alex Freeman, dies as the bloodworms attack.
The medical use of Regulan bloodworms was suggested or carried out by Doctor Phlox in the episodes "Two Days and Two Nights", "Stratagem" and "Doctor's Orders" of Star Trek: Enterprise. Illustrations of the creatures were also featured in the schoolroom and infirmary of Deep Space Nine.
- External links
- Regulan bloodworm at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
- Regulan bloodworm at official website StarTrek.com
- "Blood and Fire", Star Trek - Phase II
Read more about this topic: List Of Star Trek Animals