J Vet Sci. 2008 Jun;9(2):211-213   
 

Macrophages, myofibroblasts and mast cells in a rat liver infected with Capillaria hepatica

Won-Il Jeong1, Sun-Hee Do2, Il-Hwa Hong1, Ae-Ri Ji1, Jin-Kyu Park1, Mi-Ran Ki1, Seung-Chun Park1, Kyu-Shik Jeong1,*

 

1Department of Veterinary Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 702-701, Korea
2College of Veterinary Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul 143-701, Korea

* jeongks@knu.ac.kr

 

We trapped a rat (Rattus norvegicus) infected with Capillaria hepatica. At necropsy, grossly yellowish-white nodules (2-3 mm in diameter) were noted to be scattered on the liver's surface. Microscopically, granulomatous and fibrotic nodules that contained the eggs and/or adult worms of Capillaria hepatica were detected in the liver. Septal fibrosis was diffusely formed throughout the liver. There were a number of ED1-positive macrophages located in the sinusoids of the pseudolobules. On the double staining, myofibroblasts and mast cells were generally observed within the fibrous septa with the mast cells in close proximity to the myofibroblasts. We suggest that the interactions between macrophages, myofibroblasts and mast cells play a role in the septal fibrosis observed in rats infected by Capillaria hepatica.