Introduction. Human fascioliasis is a zoonotic infection caused by the adult stage of the Fasciola species. Fasciola hepatica is a parasite that, following living in its vertebrate host, may reduce the host›s inflammatory immune responses to infectious diseases, including COVID-19. Therefore, because of the completely unproven and limited data on this issue, the study evaluates the prevalence of antibodies against this parasite in patients admitted to hospital due to relatively severe symptoms of COVID-19. Materials and method. During the first wave of coronavirus-19, investigations were carried out on the serum samples of 182 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, diagnosed by PCR test, and on 210 healthy subjects in Alborz province, Iran,between March -June 2020. The status of anti-Fasciola antibodies was determined in all serum samples by using the ELISA technique. A self-developed questionnaire was used to measure demographic information. Results. The frequency of Fasciola infection was found to be lesser in the COVID-19 patients than in the healthy control (n = 4, 2.2%, n = 9, 4.3%, respectively; p = 0.041). There was no significant difference between COVID-19 patients and the control group in the variables of age, education (p > 0.05). Conclusions.The study indicates that a significant association exists between Fasciola hepatica seroprevalence and the studied COVID-19 patients and healthy individuals. The results also suggest that fascioliasis may be able to lead to decreased immune responses, thereby reducing the severity and symptoms of COVID-19 disease.

Background: Human Fascioliasis is a zoonotic infection caused by the adult stage of Fasciola species. Fasciola hepatica is a parasite that, following living in its vertebrate host, reduces the host's inflammatory immune responses to infectious diseases, including COVID-19. Therefore, because of the completely unproven and limited data on this issue, we decided to evaluate the prevalence of antibodies against this parasite in patients admitted to the hospital due to relatively severe symptoms of COVID-19.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on the serum samples of 182 patients with COVID-19 disease who were diagnosed by PCR test and 210 healthy subjects in Alborz Province, Iran between March and June 2020. Anti-Fasciola antibodies status was determined in all serum samples, using ELISA technique. A self-developed questionnaire was used to measure demographic information.Results: The frequency of Fasciola infection was found to be significantly higher in COVID-19 patients as compared to healthy control (n = 4, 2.2%, n = 9, 4.3%; respectively) (P = 0.041). There was no significant difference between COVID-19 patients and control group in age, education, and gender (P > 0.05).Conclusions: This study indicates that a significant association between Fasciola hepatica seropositivity and COVID-19 disease. Our finding suggests that Fasciola infection may be able to lead to decreased immune responses, thereby reducing the severity and symptoms of COVID-19 disease.

Background: Paraquat (PQ), an herbicide, is a very poisonous compound for both humans and animals. This study was conducted to examine the protective effect of the Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) in newborn rats from pregnant rats pre-treated with PQ. Methods: The experiments were conducted on 25 rats, divided in five groups randomly and equally: 1. Control Group received normal saline (0.1 ml/day); 2. PQ Group received PQ only (5 mg/kg/day); 3. PQ+CoQ10 Group received PQ (5 mg/kg) and CoQ10 (10 mg/kg) daily; 4. PQ+olive oil Group received PQ (5 mg/kg) and olive oil (10 mg/kg) daily; 5. Olive oil Group received olive oil (10 mg/kg/day). All of the injections were made intraperitoneally and started on the 16th day of pregnancy through to parturition. Sixteen days after parturition, the lungs were removed from the newborn rats, paraffin sections were made and stained with hematoxylin and eosin, and analyzed histomorphometrically and stereologically. Results: The results revealed that interstitial tissue and lung alveoli had normal structures in the control and olive oil groups. In PQ and PQ-olive oil groups alveolar hemorrhage, inflammation, extensive fibrosis, decreased alveolar numbers, increased mast cells, and changes in the epithelia were observed. In PQ-CoQ10 Group there was a significant recovery in all of the histological alterations. Conclusion: Generally, Coenzyme Q10 had a protective effect against lung damages caused by PQ, but a complete recovery of the damaged lung tissue would probably take longer than 16 days after birth.