Abstract
A number of parasitic platyhelminthes are known to cause genotoxicity in humans and animals. However no such information is available on tropical liver fluke, Fasciola gigantica, which incurs huge economic losses worldwide. In the present study the genotoxic potential of F. gigantica infection in rabbits, experimentally infected with the metacercarial cysts of this parasite, has been investigated using the standard comet assay and micronucleus (MNi) test on the isolated hepatocytes and the whole blood from the infected rabbits. The tail length of the comet in both hepatocytes and reticulocytes from the infected animals was significantly prominent (p < 0.05) as compared to the controls. About 61.17 % of the hepatocytes from the infected rabbits were positive for MNi formation. A number of blood cells also showed cellular deformities, which were recognised as spicule type, schistocytes, tear drop type, acanthocytes and dumbbell type. It is possible that during the establishment of host-parasite relationship the worms might have released some products which could have contributed to the induction of cellular and DNA damage. However, long term studies are required to understand the serious implications of such an effect caused by F. gigantica, though hepatic carcinoma has not been reported so far due to fasciolosis, however, considering the present results the possibility may not be rule out for the disease progression in this direction.