Evaluation Of pH And Osmolality In The Small Intestines Of Rats (Rattus Norvegicus) And Chickens (Gallus Gallus) Experimentally Infected With Trichinella Zimbabwensis

In order to evaluate the levels of pH and osmolality in the establishment and survival of T. zimbabwensis, 10 weeks old male rats (Rattus norvegicus) and 3 weeks old chicks (Gallus gallus) were each subdivided into four groups. Group 2 and group 4 were fed muscle tissue containing 1000 infective L1 stage larvae, while group 1 and 3 were used as controls. Using a standardized post-prandial time, the rats in group 1 and 2 were sacrificed on days 2, 5, 7 and 10 p. i and chickens in groups 3 and 4 on day 2 and 5 p. i. Significant increase (p 0.05) in chickens. In infected rats, osmolality of the anterior segment of the small intestine increased significantly (p 0.05). It may be concluded that in Trichinella infection, luminal pH and osmolality are altered at certain stages of the parasite’s life cycle in the small intestine and this alteration is probably crucial for the establishment and survival of the parasite.