Unusual location of Cysticercus tenuicollis in the pericardium of an Ouled Djellal ewe from Algeria

Abstract

Cysticercus (C.) tenuicollis (metacestode of Taenia hydatigena) was found in an unusual location in the pericardium of a three-yearsold Ouled Djellal ewe in Algeria. Postmortem examination revealed the presence of five large cysts (3-5 cm in diameter) in different organs (pericardium, intestine, mesentery, omentum and liver). The ewe was also infected by Oestrus ovis larvae and Sarcocystis sp. cysts. There is scant information about aberrant locations of C. tenuicollis cysts in sheep. Unusual locations of C. tenuicollis have been reported to occur in the lungs, kidneys, brain, ovaries, uterine tubes, uterus, cervix, vagina and inside the chorio-allantoic membrane. This is, to our knowledge, the first report of viable C. tenuicollis involving the pericardium of an Ouled Djellal ewe.