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Purpose: Dicrocoeliosis can be an important cause of production loss in ruminants due to the cost of liver condemnation at slaughter. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of Dicrocoelium infection and to predict the ecological niches and climatic variables that support dicrocoeliosis in the Himalayan ranges of Pakistan. Methods and Results: Dicrocoelium was detected in 33 of 381 liver samples and 238 of 6060 blood samples taken from sheep and goat herds in the area. The prevalence of dicrocoeliosis was higher in sheep than in goats and highest in females aged more than 3 years. An environmental risk map was created to predict active zones of transmission and showed the highest probability values in central parts of the Chitral district in the northwest of Pakistan. Climatic variables of the mean monthly diurnal temperature range (Bio2), annual precipitation (Bio12), and normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) were found to be significantly (p < 0.05) associated with the presence of Dicrocoelium infection. Conclusion: Together, the findings of this study demonstrate the most suitable ecological niches and climatic variables influencing the risk of dicrocoeliosis in the Himalayan ranges of Pakistan. The methods and results could be used as a reference to inform the control of dicrocoeliosis in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dicrocoeliosis is a trematode infection in cattle, sheep and goats caused by the small liver fluke, Dicrocoelium spp. Though endemic in Ghana, its disease situation is poorly understood. In the present study, the prevalence, distribution and worm load of Dicrocoelium spp. in cattle at slaughter in Wa were determined. A total of 389 cattle were screened during meat inspection for liver flukes, and polymerase chain reaction accompanied by DNA sequencing of the 28S rRNA gene was used to identify Dicrocoelium spp. Generally, prevalence of bovine dicrocoeliosis (small liver fluke) stood at 19.54 % with prevalence in males and females being 17.62 % and 21.43 %, respectively. Animals under 2 years suffered more infection than older ones (23.08 % vs. 16.80 %). Dicrocoelium infection was recorded in animals from all the communities where slaughtered cattle came from. On average, 31 flukes per infected animal were recorded. A molecular confirmatory test on seven flukes identified them as D. hospes. This preliminary study highlights the importance of bovine dicrocoeliosis in Ghana and has identified D. hospes as a causal agent. The data provides basis for further studies to appraise the trematode disease situation in animals and phylogeny of Dicrocoelium spp. circulating in Ghana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zoonotic diseases are a significant burden on animal and human health, particularly in developing countries. Despite recognition of this fact, endemic zoonoses often remain undiagnosed and are considered as ongoing and important problems. The purpose of the study was to determine the prevalence of zoonotic diseases of cattle and its relation with climatic elements in different seasons in order to more accurately recognize the epidemiology of these diseases in slaughtered cattle in Alborz Province. From January 2009 to March 2013, in a cross-sectional study, 131,668 livers of cattle were examined to investigate and provide data on the prevalence of some zoonotic helminthes as hydatid cyst, Fasciola, and Dicrocoelium in cattle in Alborz Province, Iran. The other inspected variables in this study include climatic elements such as humidity, precipitation, temperature, and wind speed in different seasons, and their effect on prevalence was statistically investigated. In slaughtered cattle, the prevalence of Fasciola spp. was 2.09% while that of Dicrocoelium dendriticum and hydatid cyst was 2.46 and 9.95%, respectively. According to the results, there were a direct correlation and significant statistical relationship between hydatid cyst prevalence and humidity in spring (p = 0.023, r = 0.928) and an inverse correlation and significant statistical relationship with temperature in spring (p = 0.004, r = − 0.978) while a direct correlation and significant relationship between fasciolosis prevalence and humidity in spring in cattle (p = 0.026, r = 0.922) were observed. Furthermore, an inverse correlation and significant relationship between dicrocoeliosis prevalence and temperature in spring are also observed (p = 0.048, r = − 0.881). It can calculate Alborz Province as an endemic area for hydatidosis and distomatosis while the epidemiology of hydatid cyst, fasciolosis, and dicrocoeliosis is significantly related with some climatic indices in that region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fasciola spp. and Dicrocoelium dendriticum as liver flukes, contaminate ruminants and other mammalian extensively and cause major diseases of livestock that create considerable economic losses. This retrospective study has been done to evaluate contamination rate of slaughtered animals with fasciolosis and dicrocoeliosis at Lorestan abattoirs. In this survey, prevalence rate of fasciolosis and dicrocoeliosis in slaughtered animals in a 3-year period (2010-2013) has been analyzed. A total of 356,605 livestock including 265,692 sheep and 90,913 goats were slaughtered in the 3-year period and overall 39,613 (11.1 %) livers were condemned. Fascioliasis and dicrocoeliosis were responsible for 6.3 and 4.8 % of total liver condemnations in this period, respectively. Fasciola spp. and D. dendriticum infection in sheep (7.1 and 5.6 %, respectively) were considerably higher than goats (3.9 and 2.6 %, respectively). The annual prevalence rates showed a significant decline in the fasciolosis and dicrocoeliosis infection in goats ( p < 0.001). Data showed significant seasonal pattern for distomatosis in sheep and goats ( p < 0.001). Liver condemnations due to fasciolosis were prevalent in sheep and goats slaughtered during spring and autumn, respectively, whereas dicrocoeliosis were common in spring season for both sheep and goats. This survey provides baseline data for the future monitoring of these potentially important parasitic infections in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]