Pathogenesis of Liver Lesions in Mice following a Primary Infection with Ascaris suum

Abstract

The development of liver lesions in mice infected with Ascaris suum is described and compared to the lesions in pigs. The findings suggest that liver necroses in mice are initially periacinar (centrilobular), caused by anoxia resulting from a vascular obstruction by the A. suum larvae located in the sinusoids; and that the lesions in pigs following a primary infection have a different pathogenesis. It is concluded that mice are unsuitable models for studying the pathogenesis of A. suum-induced liver lesions in pigs.