The production of malformed eggs by immature Fasciola hepatica

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Abstract
Abnormal eggs found in the gall bladder of a sheep were traced to immature specimens of Fasciola hepatica in the liver. Similar abnormal eggs have been observed by other investigators in other species of trematode and have been variously ascribed to a diseased condition of the generative organs, presence in an abnormal host, old age, and immaturity of the parasite. From the circumstances under which the abnormal eggs were found in the four specimens of F. hepatica it is concluded that the production of malformed eggs is normal in the early stages of the activity of the generative organs of the liver fluke. The finding of these eggs in the fæces may prove to be of some clinical value in indicating the period at which infestation has been acquired by an infected animal. The observation of previous investigators, that the shell substance originates in the vitelline cells, is confirmed.

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