A Case of Hepatic Cysticercosis in Wistar Albino Rats: An Unintended Finding from an Animal House

Introduction: Rats are the most commonly used animals in biomedical research as they are mild-tempered and docile, making them easy to handle. They breed earlier, produce more offsprings and share many processes with humans and are appropriate for use to answer many research questions. Scientists have specifically bred many strains or lines of rats for research, the most important being the albino Wistar rat. Despite their prolific uses, they have some disadvantages like the spread of diseases.

Methodology: Wistar albino rats were used in a study at an animal facility by the pharmacology and oral pathology departments to examine the effects of a herbal cardioprotective medicine on rat liver, kidney, and heart function. Also, the Oral cavities were used to observe various stages of tooth development. After the study, the rats were CO2 inhalation-killed in the lab, and their hearts, livers, and kidneys were dissected for examination using a scalpel, and Boyd Parker blades No.3.

Results: On gross examination, Few animals had several cysts of varied sizes that were macroscopically evident but unwelcome. As a result, all samples were fixed in 10% neutral buffered formalin overnight. The specimens underwent additional processing, including paraffin wax embedding, microtome sectioning, and haematoxylin and eosin staining. Under a light microscope, the slides were examined for histological alterations.

Analysis: Liver had multiple apparent solitary and multicystic regions, ranging from 1 to 2.5 mm, upon gross examination. On the right lobe, more of these patches with yellowish colour were seen. The cyst's cestode origin was established by histopathological analysis thanks to an exterior acellular eosinophilic cuticular layer, an underlying subtentacular layer, and outer hooks and suckers containing scolex.

Discussion: The larval stage of Taenia solium, which is frequently found in developing nations, is the infection that results in cysticercosis. Pigs serve as its intermediate hosts whereas humans are its only naturally occurring definitive host. Man may develop into an intermediate host after ingesting adult tapeworm eggs. A condition known as Cysticercosis was the result of this.

Conclusions: Our findings imply that using rats home to these larvae can lead to inaccurate results in animal research, particularly those that evaluate liver function. They change how the liver functions, producing unreliable results. To properly assess the results of their investigations, the researchers must be aware of the asymptomatic unprompted lesions.