The use of Glutathione-S-transferase levels as marker of hepatic damage in chronic fasciolosis in cattle.

There are various parasite pathogens that infect cattle, buffaloes, sheep, and goats, with fasciolosis being one of the most common. This article established a glutathione s-transferase (GST) evaluation for Fasciola spp infection and explored its application value as diagnostic tool for assess the hepatic damage, linking it with histopathological findings and the lesion score for the degree of infection with Fasciola spp. Thirty-two animals of cattle species were assigned. The investigation gathered fecal samples for sedimentation counts, blood samples for serum (GST quantification), and two tissue samples from a fasciolosis-infected liver (one in formalin for histopathological examination and the other for homogenate preparation for GST estimation). The animals were divided into four groups (8 each): Severely infected group (SG), Moderate infected group (MoG), Mild infected group (MiG), and non-infected group (C-ve). In sedimentation, SG showed a significantly higher fecal egg count but lower serum and homogenate GST values compared to other groups, while serum and homogenate GST values were lower in SG and MoG than in other groups. MiG group had higher values than C-ve, MoG and SG groups, respectively. Furthermore, pathological lesion scores were gradually increased from low to high in groups viz. (MiG, MoG, and SG, respectively). Hepatic fasciolosis is still a big economic problem in the veterinary field. GST could assess hepatic damage in the case of chronic fasciolosis.