FASCIOLA HEPATICA (Common liver fluke or sheep fluke) PHYLUM: Platyhelminthes CLASS : Trematoda

Geographic distribution: Cosmopolitan; anywhere sheep and cattle are raised HABITAT: HOST: Definitive host: Sheep Cattle Humans (Accidental) Other Mammals

Intermediate host Fresh Water Snail

MORPHOLOGY:

ADULT WORM : averaging 30 mm in length and 13 mm in width ,FASCIOLA HEPATICA is one of the largest fluke in world.

The adult worm has a very characteristic leaf shape with anterior end being broader than the posterior end and an anterior cone shaped projection The fluke possesses a powerful oral sucker at the end the anterior cone and a ventral sucker at the base of the cone. Each worm possesses ovaries and testes which are highly branched and allow for individual flukes to produce eggs independently THE EGG:the eggs of Fasciola hepatica are operculated and average 140 m in length and 75 m in width`

MORPHOLOGY: Adult hepatica lives in small passages of the liver of many kinds of mammals, especially ruminants. Humans are occasionally infected. In fact, fascioliasis is one of the major causes of hypereosinophilia in France. The flukes feed on the lining of biliary ducts. Their eggs are passed out of the liver with bile and into the intestine to be voided with feces. If they fall into water, eggs will complete their development into miracidia and hatch in 9 to 10 days during warm weather. Colder water retards their development . On hatching, miracidia have 24 hours in which a find a suitable snail host. Mother sporocysts produce first generation rediae, which in turn produce daughter rediae that develop in snail's digestive gland. From the snail, minute cercariae emerge and swim through pools of water in pasture, and encyst as metacercariae on near-by vegetation. From here, the metacercariae are ingested by the ruminant, or in some cases, by humans eating uncooked foods such as watercress. Contact with low pH in the stomach causes the early immature juvenile to begin the process of excystment. In the duodenum, the parasite breaks free of the metacercariae and burrows through the intestinal lining into the peritoneal cavity. The newly excysted juvenile does not feed at this stage, but once it finds the liver parenchyma after a period of days, feeding will start. This immature stage in the liver tissue is the pathogenic stage, causing anaemia and clinical signs sometimes observed in infected animals. The parasite browses on liver tissue for a period of up to six weeks, and eventually finds its way to the bile duct, where it matures into an adult and begins to

produce eggs. Up to 25,000 eggs per day per fluke can be produced, and in a light infection, up to 500,000 eggs per day can be deposited onto pasture by a single sheep

PATHOGENICITY: Little damage is done by juveniles penetrating the intestinal wall and the capsule surrounding the liver but much necrosis results from migration of flukes through the liver parenchyma. During this time, they feed on liver cells and blood. Anemia sometimes results from heavy infections. Worms in bile ducts cause inflammation and edema, which in turn stimulate production of fibrous tissue in the walls of these ducts. Thus thickened, the ducts can handle less bile and are less responsive to needs of the liver.

Back pressure causes atrophy of liver parenchyma, with concomitantcirrhosis and possibly jaundice. In heavy infections the gallbladder is damaged, and walls of the bile ducts are eroded completely. SYMPTOMS: Abdominal Pain Anemia Hepatic Tenderness Hepatomegaly resulting from Edema Intermittent Fever Jaundice Lethargy Nausea Prolonged High Fever Secondary Infections Vomitting Acute More common in sheep 10,000+ Metacercariea consumed at one time Dramatic Liver Inflamation, Frequently Resulting in Death

Chronic More Common and Rarely Fatal Nonspecific Symptoms

Halzoun Eating raw, infected liver Infects pharynx Causes swelling and obstructs breathing

LAB DIAGONASIS: Stool Samples

Yellow-Brown Eggs Eggs Dont Show for 4 Months

Duodenal or Biliary Aspirate Antibody Test Can detect 2 Weeks After Infection

Ultrasound Visualize Adults in Bile Duct

CT Scan Reveals Burrows in Liver

TREATMENT: In many countries , a 5-10 day course of oral bithionol at 30 mg/kg body weight is not only the preferred treatment but the only one available. It is highly effective when administered as above, but the high dose , cost and length of treatment have made it problematic for large scale control efforts. Treatment for fascioliasis has a 80-100% success rate Bithional Highly Effective Large Dose High Cost Long Treatment Period

Triclabendazole Easier to Use 1-2 Oral Doses in 24 hrs Virtually 100% Effective

Surgery CONTROL MEASURES:

Eduaction Cheapest and Most Cost Effective Way Wash Aquatic Vegetables in 6% Vinegar for 5-10 minutes Better herding practices Keep herds away from aquatic areas

Moluskicide Controls Intermediate Snail Host