Morphological Structure of Tegument in Fasciolahepatica Affecting Sheep in Saudi Arabia

Fasciola was one of the first infectious agents to be discovered and implicated an etiologic agent of disease. Fascioliasis is one of the most important parasitic diseases of domestic ruminants causing severe economic losses throughout the world. Additionally, it is increasingly being recognized as an important emerging/re-emerging infection of humans. In this study we used scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques to identify and characterize the species of Fasciola present in Saudi Arabia (KSA). This is the first morphological and untrastructural study on Fasciola in the country. Prior to this study, the species of Fasciola in KSA had not been properly identified by any technique. Accurate identification of the species is the initial step for its control, as identification followed by biological and ecological characterization is provides the necessary information for field management of the species