A study on the life cycle of haplorchis taichui(heterophyidae:trematodae) under laboratory conditions

Haplorchis  taichui is parasitic heterophyidae(trematoda) which lives in the intestinal mucosa of its main host and producing heterophyidosis,which is a zonootic diseases.subsequent to the authors, provious  studies which were made on parasit,s lift  cycle in nature in Khuzestan province,Iran,this experimental study was performed with the aim of establishing the parasite,s lift cycle in laboratory.in this study the heterophyidae eggs were exposed to Milonides tuberculate or Melanopsis spp(fresh-water snails) within an aquarium and then cercariae were obtained.in aquarium,Gambosia affinis(fish) were infected with the above cercariae and then metacercariae were obtained from the latter after one month.domestic cats,rats,hen,s chicken and mus musculus were fed with the ebive infected fishes and then after one month such animals were autopsised,which led to the isolation of H.taichui from rat and cat.this study revaeled that H.taichui as a parasitology research model can be established in susceptible  animals such as rat and cat under laboratory conditions.