Identification and prevalence of fluke infection in yak and Tibetan sheep around Qinghai Lake, China

Abstract

The liver ukes (Fasciola spp.) and rumen ukes (Paramphistomum spp.) are signi cant parasites in livestock worldwide, meanwhile, Fasciola spp. is considered as an important zoonotic parasite. To our knowledge, there are no reported of the uke species identi cation and epidemiological prevalence in yak and Tibetan sheep around Qinghai Lake, China. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify the major uke species and determine the prevalence of uke infection among yak and Tibetan sheep in this area. A total of 307 fecal samples were collected and identi ed by morphology of uke eggs together with molecular approach. Our study rst found the predominant uke species were F. hepatica and P. leydeni in yak and Tibetan sheep around Qinghai Lake. The overall prevalence of uke infection in yak and Tibetan sheep was 57.65% (177/307). Speci cally, the prevalence of F. hepatica and P. leydeni was 14.98% (46/307) and 31.60% (97/307), respectively, and the co-infection of both species was 11.07% (34/307). There was a signi cant difference in the prevalence of overall uke infection among yak and Tibetan sheep (p < 0.05). However, the prevalence of F. hepatica was signi cantly different in yak and Tibetan sheep (p < 0.05), but not P. leydeni. These ndings of the present study provide useful information about the current status of natural uke invasion in yak and Tibetan sheep around Qinghai Lake, which could be important for monitoring and control of these parasites in the region.