Pathomorphological and Morphometric Studies of Bovine Liver Infected with Fascioles

The paper presents the studies on morphological changes in cattle with a different number of fascioles in liver (up to 70 fascioles and up to 250 specimen). A total of 127 heads of 2-4-year-old cattle from the farms of the Republic of Bashkortostan were examined. The diagnosis of fasciolosis was based on epizootological data, clinical indicators, and detection of fasciola eggs in faeces by successive washes of faeces. After slaughter 3 groups of 5 animals were selected based on pathoanatomic, helminthological diagnosis and fasciola invasion intensity. The first group included parasite-free animals, the second group – cattle with an infestation rate of 70 worms/head, the third group – animals with infestation rate of 250 parasites/head. Histological studies were conducted on liver samples in 10% neutral formalin with embedding them in paraffin blocks. After dewaxing 5-7 micrometres thick sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and coloured according to Van Gieson’s method for connective tissue examination. Morphometric indicators were studied with an ocular ruler. The data was processed on the Pentium OS with Microsoft Word and Excel software and the Student’s t-test results validation. The infected bull calves have an enlarged liver size, dense liver texture and tuberous surface, the thickened capsule, thick, sinuous, expanded yellow-white bile ducts cords. Histological and morphometric methods identified structural changes in hepatocytes, hepatic lobules and the microcirculatory system of the liver. Pathological changes in the liver depend significantly on the average number of parasites found on a single infested animal. The work provides a fasciolosis prevention and treatment recommendation, taking into account the manifested pathological liver processes.