Pathology induced by Sphaerirostris picae (Acanthocephala, Centrorhynchidae) in the hooded crow Corvus corone cornix (Aves: Corvidae) from north Delta of Egypt

The present study describes the pathological manifestations of the acanthocephalan, Sphaerirostris picae (Rudolphi, 1819) Golvan, 1960 in the small intestine of the hooded crow "Corvus corone cornix" collected from the northern parts of Nile Delta in Egypt. Histological and histochemical alternations of infected ileum were illustrated using heamatoxylin and eosin stain, alcian blue method for mucin and Malaty's modified simultaneous coupling azodye method for acid and alkaline phosphatases. Examinations of 25 birds showed that the infected ileum only harbored the acanthocephalan worm, no other helminthes were observed. The proboscis of the acanthocephalan pierced the mucosal epithelium, its lamina propria and reached the external muscularis causing compression and erosion of the villar epithelium, shortening and abrasion of the intestinal villi and destruction of the glands (crypts) apposing the everted worm proboscis. Noticeable cellular infiltration, hemorrhage and marked destruction, thickening and vacuolation of stromal connective tissue surrounded the acanthocephalan preasoma, as well as in the submucosa were detected. A marked increase in the number of goblet cells in both crypts and villi was observed. The intestinal epithelium exhibited a detectable increase in acid phosphatase activity in both villi and crypts while alkaline phosphatase showed moderate decrease in the villi and detectable decline in the crypts epithelium.