title: Monitoring of parasitic cysts in the brains of a flock of sheep in Egypt.
abstract: Cerebral parasitic cysts constitute a major problem for livestock. Among these, coenurosis and toxoplasmosis are predominant. Here, a total number of 60 sheep obtained from a private farm in Suez province, Egypt, were examined postmortem to detect visible parasitic cysts, and microscopically to detect small-sized entities. Necropsy revealed bladder-like cysts measuring 0.5-6.5 cm in diameter that were filled with a translucent fluid containing a large number of protoscolices. Accordingly, the cysts were identified as the metacestode Coenurus cerebralis. Among the sheep examined, 11 animals (7 males and 4 females) (18.3%) were infected. Most of the cysts were located in the cerebral hemispheres, with numbers ranging from one to three per infected animal. The effect of the presence of cysts in the brain tissue was evaluated. Histopathologically, pseudocysts of the apicomplexan Toxoplasma gondii were found in two animals with no detectable inflammatory cell reactions. In conclusion, coenurosis and toxoplasmosis are serious parasitic problems that play a significant role in sheep management in Egypt, as a result of close contact between livestock and dogs and cats, which play a critical role in the life cycle of these parasites.
authors.affiliation: Beni-Suef University, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Pathology, Beni-SuefBU, Egypt.
authors.forename: Shehata
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Anwar
authors.forename: Emad
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mahdy
authors.forename: Khalid Ali
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: El-Nesr
authors.forename: Khaled Mohamed
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: El-Dakhly
authors.forename: Adel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shalaby
authors.forename: Tokuma
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yanai
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D020807:Central Nervous System Parasitic Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D002590:Cestode Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D004534:Egypt / Q000453:epidemiology; D062665:Epidemiological Monitoring; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D012756:Sheep; D012757:Sheep Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology; D014124:Toxoplasmosis, Animal / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology