Rumen fluke in cattle and sheep: measuring impacts and improving diagnosis

蠕虫（蠕虫）寄生虫导致约55%的农场动物疾病。这些寄生虫通过影响生长率、生育力、肉质、羊毛或牛奶产量对牲畜生产力产生巨大影响，有时甚至导致死亡。影响英国/爱尔兰（以及整个欧盟）动物生产的最重要的寄生虫之一是肝片吸虫。它感染了全世界超过3亿头牛和2.5亿只羊，通过生产力损失给全球农业造成超过30亿美元的损失。在英国，由于牲畜状况不佳以及牛奶和肉类产量大幅减少，仅养牛业每年就损失约2300万英镑。令人担忧的是，对肝吸虫的一线化学治疗（一种叫做三氯苯达唑的药物）的耐药性已经变得普遍，这使得农民几乎没有办法对抗这种疾病。直到最近，由类似的寄生虫（称为副平口虫或瘤胃吸虫）引起的感染被认为是次要的。然而，在过去的几年里，越来越多的报告，从英国和爱尔兰农民的生产损失已被归因于感染瘤胃吸虫。目前认为，在许多地区，瘤胃吸虫已成为比肝吸虫更严重的问题。为了应对瘤胃吸虫感染对粮食安全构成的日益严重的威胁，我们必须立即采取行动。在这个项目中，我们将回答有关其生物学，其对动物健康和生产力的影响的一些基本问题，并将开发新的测试，使更快速和具体的诊断比目前可能的。具体来说，我们将解决三个主要问题：1）什么是在英国的瘤胃吸虫问题的程度？2)瘤胃吸虫对动物的生产性能、健康和福利有什么影响？3)我们能否建立一种快速、特异的诊断方法来检测瘤胃吸虫？我们的方法是及时的，将确定英国问题的严重程度，并首次确定感染对牛和羊的动物生产的可衡量影响。此外，我们还将研制出快速和具体的诊断测试方法，以便能够采取适当的控制措施。这些重要的发现将使更有效的管理措施能够尽早实施，并为我们提供一个现实的机会，避免目前肝吸虫的耐药性问题。

Helminth (worm) parasites cause around 55% of all farm animal diseases. These parasites impact hugely on livestock productivity by affecting growth rates, fertility, meat quality, wool or milk production, and sometimes cause death. One of the most important parasites to impact animal production in the UK/Ireland (and throughout the EU) is the liver fluke, Fasciola hepatica. It infects more than 300 million cattle and 250 million sheep worldwide resulting in losses of over $3 billion to global agriculture through lost productivity. In the UK it costs the cattle farming industry alone around £23 million each year as a result of poor animal condition and a significant reduction of milk and meat yields. Worryingly, resistance to the frontline chemical treatment for liver fluke (a drug called triclabendazole) has become widespread leaving farmers with little to combat the disease. Until recently, infections by similar parasites called paramphistomes, or rumen fluke, were regarded as being of minor importance. However, over the last few years increasing reports of production losses from farmers in Great Britain and Ireland have been ascribed to infection by rumen fluke. It is now believed that rumen fluke has become a bigger problem than liver fluke in many areas. In order to meet the growing threat to food security posed by rumen fluke infection it is imperative that we act now. In this project we will answer some basic questions about its biology, its impact on animal health and productivity and will develop new tests that will allow more rapid and specific diagnosis than currently possible. Specifically, we will address three main questions: 1) What is the extent of the rumen fluke problem in the UK?2) What is the impact of rumen fluke on animal performance, health & welfare?3) Can we develop a rapid and specific diagnostic test for rumen fluke?Our approach is timely and will determine the extent of the problem in the UK and for the first time determine a measurable impact of infection on animal production in both cattle and sheep. Furthermore we will have produced rapid and specific diagnostic tests that will allow appropriate control measures to be put in place. These important findings will allow more effective management practices to be put in place early and give us a realistic chance of avoiding the problems of drug resistance currently seen with liver fluke.