Opisthorchiasis is a widespread helminth infection in Russia. The largest opisthorchiasis endemic focus in the world is the Ob river watershed in Western Siberia. The main causative agent of this condition is the liver fluke, Opisthorchis felineus. In addition, another liver fluke species in the Opisthorchiidae family, Metorchis bilis, causes a symptomatically similar disease, metorchiasis. Despite a long research history going back to 1927, opisthorchiasis remains a serious problem in Russia, and numerous questions related to the epidemiology of these liver fluke infections and their patterns of distribution in Western Siberia, the causes of high prevalence in different populations, and the prognosis of the epidemiological situation remain to be answered. In this review, we first briefly describe the life cycle of O. felineus and then summarize the available published data on the epidemiological aspects of O. felineus infection among populations in Western Siberia. Additionally, the geographical distribution and rates of infection with the two major small liver flukes, O. felineus and M. bilis, in the intermediate (Bithyniidae snails and cyprinid fish) and definitive (humans, wild and domestic carnivorous animals and birds) hosts are described to assess their role in the transmission cycle. Moreover, species in the genus Opisthorchis and the genus Metorchis that have been reported in carnivorous mammals and birds in Western Siberia are listed and their potential to serve as the agents of opisthorchiasis transmission is discussed.
Keywords: Epidemiology; Metorchis bilis; Opisthorchiasis; Opisthorchis felineus; Western Siberia.
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