Plasma ascorbic acid levels in sheep experimentally infected with Fasciola hepatica.

Three groups of sheep, one control (A) and two infected with Fasciola hepatica metacercariae (B&C), were investigated. Each animal of group B was orally dosed with about 270 metacercariae and each sheep in group C received two such doses administered 14 days apart. In both infected groups, plasma ascorbic acid levels progressively decreased after exposure reaching a minimum by week 9, and then slightly increased during the subsequent five weeks. The decrease in ascorbic acid concentrations was mainly related to impaired synthesis as a result of the hepatic damage caused by the flukes.