Anti-microbial susceptibility of Streptococcus spp. isolated from bovine mastitis in Argentina

The in vitro susceptibility to penicillin G, erythromycin and clindamycin was determined by the disc diffusion test and by E-test for a total of 47 streptococcal strains (three Streptococcus uberis, 36 Streptococcus agalactiae, eight Streptococcus dysgalactiae spp. dysgalactiae) isolated from bovine intramammary infections in Argentina. Moreover, resistance phenotypes of erythromycin-resistant streptococcal isolates was characterized. MIC90 of penicillin G, erythromycin and clindamycin for S. agalactiae were 0.75, 8.0 and 12.0 microg/ml respectively. Resistance to erythromycin and clindamycin was detected in 13 (27.6%) and 12 (25.5%) isolates respectively. No isolate was resistant to penicillin G. Resistance against macrolides, lincosamides and streptogramin B (MLS(B)) represented by the constitutive MLS(B) phenotype was present in 11 (23.4%) erythromycin-resistant isolates and two isolates (4.3%) expressed the M phenotype. The inducible MLS(B) phenotype was not identified. Results suggest that beta-lactams are the first-line antibiotics when treating streptococcal udder infections; however, the continuous monitoring of the antibiotic resistance is essential, as the emergence of resistant strains has become a growing concern on the therapy of bovine mastitis.     

山羊败血性链球菌的分离鉴定与药敏实验

通过临诊观察、病理剖检和细菌分离鉴定,确诊1例急性山羊败血性链球菌病。从患病羊心血分离的致病菌为革兰氏阳性菌,镜下呈单个球状或链状排列,在鲜血琼脂平板上呈β溶血,对头孢哌酮、头孢呋辛、米诺环素、环丙沙星、左氧氟沙星、氧氟沙星、诺氟沙星、呋喃妥因等抗菌药物高度敏感,可用于山羊链球菌病的治疗。     

氟尼辛葡甲胺对猪实验性链球菌感染的解热作用

氟尼辛(flunxin),是美国先灵葆雅公司于20世纪90年代开发的兽用非甾体类抗炎药,主要通过抑制环氧化酶、减少前列腺素等炎性介质的生成而发挥解热、抗炎和镇痛作用[1].     

Campylobacter spp., Salmonella spp., Verocytotoxic Escherichia coli,and Antibiotic Resistance in Indicator Organisms in Wild Cervids

Faecal samples were collected, as part of the National Health Surveillance Program for Cervids (HOP) in Norway, from wild red deer, roe deer, moose and reindeer during ordinary hunting seasons from 2001 to 2003. Samples from a total of 618 animals were examined for verocytotoxic E. coli (VTEC); 611 animals for Salmonella and 324 animals for Campylobacter. A total of 50 samples were cultivated from each cervid species in order to isolate the indicator bacterial species E. coli and Enterococcus faecalis/E. faecium for antibiotic resistance pattern studies. Salmonella and the potentially human pathogenic verocytotoxic E. coli were not isolated, while Campylobacter jejuni jejuni was found in one roe deer sample only. Antibiotic resistance was found in 13 (7.3%) of the 179 E. coli isolates tested, eight of these being resistant against one type of antibiotic only. The proportion of resistant E. coli isolates was higher in wild reindeer (24%) than in the other cervids (2.2%). E. faecalis or E. faecium were isolated from 19 of the samples, none of these being reindeer. All the strains isolated were resistant against one (84%) or more (16%) antibiotics. A total of 14 E. faecalis-strains were resistant to virginiamycin only. The results indicate that the cervid species studied do not constitute an important infectious reservoir for either the human pathogens or the antibiotic resistant microorganisms included in the study.     

红霉素与四环素耐药基因在猪链球菌临床分离株中的检测

为了解临床分离的48株猪链球菌对大环内酯类药物及四环素耐药基因的分布,用微量稀释法测定48株临床分离的猪链球菌对大环内酯类、四环素、β-内酰胺类及头孢类9种抗生素的药物敏感性,建立PCR方法对耐药菌株大环内酯类耐药基因ermA/B/C、mefA/E、msrD、mphB、23S rRNA,L4,L22和四环素耐药基因tetM、tetO、tetL、tetK及与Tn916转座子相关的int和xis基因进行检测。结果表明,31株2型猪链球菌中大环内酯类药物耐药率为3.23%,17株9型猪链球菌红霉素耐药率为88.24%,泰乐菌素、磷酸替米考星、阿奇霉素的耐药率均为70.59%。48株猪链球菌对四环素均耐药,但对青霉素、阿莫西林、头孢曲松钠、氨苄西林均敏感。大环内酯类耐药基因主要以ermB为主,占75%(12/16),mefA/E、msrD占25%(4/16),16株红霉素耐药菌株中,tetM、tetO、int、xis的检出率分别为25%(4/16)、62.5%(10/16)、31.25%(5/16)和31.25%(5/16),没有检测到ermA、ermC、mphB、tetL、tetK。所有红霉素耐药菌株均未检测到23S rRNA、L4和L22突变。     

Clostridium difficile: prevalence in horses and environment,and antimicrobial susceptibility

REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY: Clostridium difficile has been associated with acute colitis in mature horses. OBJECTIVES: To survey C. difficile colonisation of the alimentary tract with age, occurrence of diarrhoea and history of antibiotic therapy; and to study the occurrence and survival of C. difficile in the environment and antimicrobial susceptibility of isolated strains. METHODS: A total of 777 horses of different breeds, age and sex were studied. Further, 598 soil samples and 434 indoor surface samples were examined. Antimicrobial susceptibility of 52 strains was investigated by Etest for 10 antibiotics. RESULTS: In horses that developed acute colitis during antibiotic treatment, 18 of 43 (42%) were positive to C. difficile culture and 12 of these (28%) were positive in the cytotoxin B test. Furthermore, C. difficile was isolated from a small number of diarrhoeic mature horses (4 of 72 [6%]) with no history of antibiotic treatment, but not from 273 healthy mature horses examined or 65 horses with colic. An interesting new finding was that, in normal healthy foals age < 14 days, C. difficile was isolated from 1/3 of foals (16 of 56 [29%]). All older foals (170) except one were negative. Seven of 16 (44%) nondiarrhoeic foals treated with erythromycin or gentamicin in combination with rifampicin were also excretors of C. difficile. On studfarms, 14 of 132 (11%) outdoor soil samples were positive for C. difficile in culture, whereas only 2 of 220 (1%) soil samples from farms with mature horses were positive for C. difficile (P = < 0.001). By PCR, it was demonstrated that strains from the environment and healthy foals can serve as a potential reservoir of toxigenic C. difficile. The experimental study conducted here found that C. difficile survived in nature and indoors for at least 4 years in inoculated equine faeces. The susceptibility of 52 strains was investigated for 10 antibiotics and all were susceptible to metronidazole (MIC < or = 4 mg/l) and vancomycin (MIC < or = 2 mg/l). CONCLUSIONS: C. difficile is associated with acute colitis in mature horses, following antibiotic treatment. Furthermore, C. difficile was isolated from 1 in 3 normal healthy foals age < 14 days. POTENTIAL RELEVANCE: Strains from healthy foals and the environment can serve as a potential reservoir of toxigenic C. difficile.     

Incidence and monthly prevalence of Gasterophilus spp. larvae (Diptera: Gasterophilidae) in the stomach of donkeys (Equus asinus) in Egypt

The stomachs of 118 donkeys were examined at postmortem during the period from March 1982 to February 1983 for Gasterophilus spp. larvae. G. intestinalis larvae clustered in groups near the boundary of the glandular and non-glandular epithelium of the stomach and infested 98.3% of the donkeys with highest numbers in July and lowest numbers in October. G. nasalis larvae were mainly attached near the pylorus and first part of the duodenum and infested 87.3% of donkeys with highest incidence in December and lowest in October. The ratio of the second and third instars of G. intestinalis to G. nasalis ranged from 71% to 29%. The percentage of donkeys infested with 1-100, 101-200 and 201-300 larvae was 72.0, 18.6 and 4.3% for G. intestinalis and 76.3, 8.5 and 0.8% for G. nasalis.     

广西罗非鱼无乳链球菌的分离鉴定、毒力基因及耐药性研究

本研究旨在明确中国罗非鱼主养区广西各地罗非鱼无乳链球菌（Streptococcus agalactiae）分离株的血清型分布、毒力基因携带情况和耐药情况,为罗非鱼无乳链球菌病的防控奠定基础。2018-2019年从广西柳州、钦州、南宁、北海等地患无乳链球菌病罗非鱼体内分离了47株无乳链球菌,并对各分离株的血清型、毒力基因分布和耐药情况进行检测和分析。血清型检测结果表明,47株无乳链球菌血清型高度一致,均为Ⅰa血清型。对4种毒力基因检测结果表明,47株无乳链球菌临床分离株cylE、sodA、gapC毒力基因的检出率均为100%,而scpB基因仅在人源参考菌株2603V/R中检出,在所有鱼源分离株中未检出。对11类（31种）常见抗生素的药敏试验结果表明,临床分离株对磺胺异噁唑、新霉素、庆大霉素、卡那霉素的耐药率达到90%以上,对氧氟沙星、左氧氟沙星、氨苄青霉素、阿莫西林、头孢克洛、头孢曲松、头孢哌酮、头孢拉定、土霉素、强力霉素的敏感性均为100%。多重耐药检测结果表明,5重以上耐药菌株占93.62%,其中9重以上耐药菌株为19.15%,且均分离自柳州地区。结果表明,广西地区罗非鱼源无乳链球菌血清型单一,均为Ⅰa血清型,且均携带多种毒力基因,多重耐药现象严重。     

Pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of erythromycin in pigeons (Columba livia)

Tissue and plasma concentrations were determined after intravenous and oral administration of erythromycin to pigeons to establish the pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of the drug. A short mean half-life of elimination of 0.9 h was found. The relative bioavailability after direct crop administration of erythromycin thiocyanate or erythromycin ethylsuccinate at a dosage rate of 100 mg/kg was less than 10%. At a drug concentration in drinking water of 1 g/l, erythromycin plasma levels were barely detectable, whilst lung and trachea concentrations reached a maximum of 1.6 micrograms/ml. Even after crop administration of 100-mg/kg erythromycin thiocyanate, low plasma levels were obtained, whilst lung and trachea concentrations were substantially higher. Prescribed drinking-water regimens seemed unable to yield therapeutic tissue concentrations. Only individual crop administration seemed an appropriate medication method. The use of erythromycin ethylsuccinate did not present any advantage in comparison with erythromycin thiocyanate.     

Annual incidence, prevalence and transmission characteristics of Streptococcus agalactiae in Danish dairy herds

Contagious mastitis pathogens continue to pose an economic threat to the dairy industry. An understanding of their frequency and transmission dynamics is central to evaluating the effectiveness of control programmes. The objectives of this study were twofold: (1) to estimate the annual herd-level incidence rates and apparent prevalences of Streptococcus agalactiae (S. agalactiae) in the population of Danish dairy cattle herds over a 10-year period from 2000 to 2009 inclusive and (2) to estimate the herd-level entry and exit rates (demographic parameters), the transmission parameter, β, and recovery rate for S. agalactiae infection. Data covering the specified period, on bacteriological culture of all bulk tank milk samples collected annually as part of the mandatory Danish S. agalactiae surveillance scheme, were extracted from the Danish Cattle Database and subsequently analysed. There was an increasing trend in both the incidence and prevalence of S. agalactiae over the study period. Per 100 herd-years the value of β was 54.1 (95% confidence interval [CI] 46.0-63.7); entry rate 0.3 (95% CI 0.2-0.4); infection-related exit rate 7.1 (95% CI 5.6-8.9); non-infection related exit rate 9.2 (95% CI 7.4-11.5) and recovery rate 40.0 (95% CI 36.8-43.5). This study demonstrates a need to tighten the current controls against S. agalactiae in order to lower its incidence.     

Prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility of Salmonella spp. in small Indian mongooses (Herpestes auropunctatus) in Grenada,West Indies

Intestinal samples from 156 small Indian mongooses (Herpestes auropunctatus) collected island-wide in Grenada from April 2011 to March 2013 were examined for the presence of Salmonella enterica spp. Nineteen (12%) mongooses were culture-positive for S. enterica spp. of which five serotypes were identified. Salmonella javiana and S. Montevideo were the most commonly isolated serotypes. The other serotypes isolated were S. Rubislaw, S. Panama and S. Arechavaleta. All isolates were susceptible to amoxicillin–clavulanic acid, ampicillin, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, gentamicin, nalidixic acid, imipenem and trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole. One isolate (S. Montevideo) showed resistance to tetracycline and intermediate resistance to streptomycin. The five isolated Salmonella serotypes are potential human pathogens suggesting that the mongoose may play a role in the epidemiology of human salmonellosis in Grenada.     

Characterization of a novel type of MLSB resistance plasmid from Staphylococcus saprophyticus carrying a constitutively expressed erm(C) gene

An erm(C)-carrying plasmid of unusual size and restriction map, designated pSES22, was identified in a Staphylococcus saprophyticus strain and sequenced completely. Constitutive expression of the erm(C) gene from pSES22 is based on a novel 22-bp tandem duplication in the erm(C) translational attenuator. Comparative analysis of the deduced Erm(C) amino acid sequence revealed that Erm(C) from pSES22 - together with an Erm(C) methylase from S. hyicus - represented a separate branch in the homology tree of Erm(C) methylases. Structural comparisons showed that plasmid pSES22 differed distinctly from all other completely sequenced erm(C)-carrying resistance plasmids. However, pSES22 was similar to several members of a diverse group of small plasmids, all of which carried closely related plasmid backbones consisting of the genes repU and pre/mob, but differed in their resistance genes.     

Prevalence of Microsporidia, Cryptosporidium spp., and Giardia spp. in beavers (Castor canadensis) in Massachusetts.

Feces from 62 beavers (Castor canadensis) in Massachusetts were examined by fluorescence microscopy (IFA) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for Microsporidia species, Cryptosporidium spp., and Giardia spp. between January 2002 and December 2004. PCR-positive specimens were further examined by gene sequencing. Protist parasites were detected in 6.4% of the beavers. All were subadults and kits. Microsporidia species were not detected. Giardia spp. was detected by IFA from four beavers; Cryptosporidium spp. was also detected by IFA from two of these beavers. However, gene sequence data for the ssrRNA gene from these two Cryptosporidium spp.-positive beavers were inconclusive in identifying the species. Nucleotide sequences of the TPI, ssrRNA, and beta-giardin genes for Giardia spp. (deposited in GenBank) indicated that the four beavers were excreting Giardia duodenalis Assemblage B, the zoonotic genotype representing a potential source of waterborne Giardia spp. cysts.     

Detection and prevalence of four different hemotropic Mycoplasma spp. in Eastern North Carolina American black bears (Ursus americanus)

Hemotropic Mycoplasma spp. are globally emerging, obligate parasitic, epierythrocytic bacteria that infect many vertebrates, including humans. Hemoplasma infection can cause acute life-threatening symptoms or lead to a chronic sub-clinical carrier state. Hemotropic Mycoplasma spp. transmission, prevalence, and host specificity are uncertain. The purpose of this study was to determine the molecular prevalence of Mycoplasma species in blood from 68 free-ranging black bears from the eastern coast of North Carolina. DNA amplification of Mycoplasma 16S rRNA gene identified four distinct species infecting 34/68 (50%) of the black bear blood samples, including Candidatus M. haematoparvum. The high prevalence of hemotropic Mycoplasma infection in this wildlife species highlights the importance of understanding intra and inter species transmission. Black bears may play a role in the transmission of hemotropic Mycoplasma spp. between animals, arthropod vectors, and humans. Further studies are needed to elucidate black bears as a potential reservoir for hemotropic Mycoplasma infections.     

The prevalence of Sarcocystis spp in dogs and red foxes.

Protozoan parasites of the genus Sarcocystis have been recognised for many years as intramuscular cysts of numerous vertebrates. It is only comparatively recently that the two-host nature of the life cycle has been recognised and that the intramuscular cysts are a stage in the developmental cycle of coccidian parasites of flesh eating mammals (Fayer 1974, Fayer and Johnson 1973, 1974, Rommel and others 1972, Dubey 1976). Carnivores ingest the intramuscular cysts from herbivores and presumably from other animals too and eventually shed sporulated tetrazoic sporocysts in their faeces. The cystic stages which occur in the flesh of herbivores are probably non-pathogenic but the earlier stages in which schizonts develop in vascular endothelium may be severely pathogenic. Sarcocystis cruzi, S ovicanis and S porcifelis are known to be severely pathogenic in cattle, sheep and pigs respectively (Dubey 1976). Observations on the prevalence of Sarcocystis spp in the faeces of working farm dogs, greyhounds and foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are recorded.     

A selective procedure for the field isolation of pathogenic Streptococcus spp. of rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri)

A procedure established for the selective isolation of the species of Streptococcus responsible for rainbow trout streptococcosis in South Africa, consisted of the inoculation of samples into nutrient broth which had been supplemented with 100 micrograms/ml of nalidixic acid, 160 micrograms/ml of oxolinic acid or 200 micrograms/ml of sodium azide. After incubation, the sample was plated onto tetrazolium agar on which the rainbow trout pathogenic Streptococcus species grew as a red colony. The colonies were isolated from the tetrazolium agar and identified as rainbow trout pathogenic isolates by biochemical and serological tests. In the laboratory the selective procedure is capable of detecting about 2 bacteria per ml. This procedure was used in the field and biochemically identical Streptococcus species were found in the mud and a freshwater crab from the water source of a site with a history of streptococcosis.