Clinicopathological studies on spontaneous Trichosomoidiasis in rats

The prevalence of Trichosomoides crassicauda infection was significantly higher (34%) in laboratory rats procured from a closed colony of IVRI while surprisingly it was not recorded (0 %) in free living wild rats of same locality of Bareilly, UP. This parasite produced asymptomatic infection in urinary bladder and failed to show diagnostic haematological, serum and tissue biochemical alterations in body fluids and tissues of visceral target organ urinary bladder. Although T. crassicauda infections can be conventionally diagnosed in rats by presence of larvated eggs, worms in urine samples; focal hyperplasia of urothelium, sections of worms and eggs in urothelium or in lumina of urinary bladder on histopatholgical examination of urinary bladder but demonstration of worms by SEM method is useful for morphological studies.