Abstract:
The occurrence of Fasciola gigantica and F. hepatica in Africa is well documented; however,
unlike in Asia, there is a paucity of information on the existence of hybrids or parthenogenetic species
on the continent. Nonetheless, these hybrid species may have beneficial characteristics, such as
increased host range and pathogenicity. This study provides evidence of the potential existence
of Fasciola hybrids in Africa. A literature search of articles published between 1980 and 2022 was
conducted in PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct using a combination of search terms
and Boolean operators. Fasciola species were documented in 26 African countries with F. hepatica
being restricted to 12 countries, whilst F. gigantica occurred in 24 countries, identified based on
morphological features of adult Fasciola specimens or eggs and molecular techniques. The cooccurrence
of both species was reported in 11 countries. However, the occurrence of potential Fasciola
hybrids was only confirmed in Egypt and Chad but is suspected in South Africa and Zimbabwe. These
were identified based on liver fluke morphometrics, assessment of the sperms in the seminal vesicle,
and molecular techniques. The occurrence of intermediate host snails Galba truncatula and Radix
natalensis was reported in Ethiopia, Egypt, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda, where F. hepatica
and F. gigantica co-occurrences were reported. The invasive Pseudosuccinea columella snails naturally
infected with F. gigantica were documented in South Africa and Egypt. In Zimbabwe, P. columella was
infected with a presumed parthenogenetic Fasciola. This suggests that the invasive species might also
be contributing to the overlapping distributions of the two Fasciola species since it can transmit both
species. Notwithstanding the limited studies in Africa, the potential existence of Fasciola hybrids
in Africa is real and might mimic scenarios in Asia, where parthenogenetic Fasciola exist in most
Asian countries. In South Africa, aspermic F. hepatica and Fasciola sp. have been reported already,
and Fasciola hybrids have been reported? in Chad and Egypt. Thus, the authors recommend future
surveys using molecular markers recommended to identify Fasciola spp. and their snail intermediate hosts to demarcate areas of overlapping distribution where Fasciola hybrids and/or parthenogenetic
Fasciola may occur. Further studies should also be conducted to determine the presence and role
of P. columella in the transmission of Fasciola spp. in these geographical overlaps to help prevent
parasite spillbacks.
Description:
SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS : TABLE S1: Summary of African studies reporting on the presence of Fasciola species recovered from various definitive hosts. TABLE S2: The distribution and occurrence of Fasciola species in Africa based on studies conducted from 1980–2022. TABLE S3: Summary of African studies reporting on the occurrence of Fasciola species in their snail intermediate hosts. TABLE S4: Summary of studies reporting on the occurrence of intermediate hosts of Fasciola spp. in Africa. References [140–317] are cited in the supplementary materials.