The isolation and enumeration of three feline oral Porphyromonas species from subcutaneous abscesses in cats

Samples were examined from 15 subcutaneous fight wound abscesses from 15 cats. All abscesses were closed at the time of sampling and cats had received no prior treatment. Samples were processed within 20 min and quantitative assessment made of total facultative and obligately anaerobic flora isolated. Digoxigenin labelled whole chromosomal DNA probes directed against three feline members of the genus Porphyromonas (P. gingivalis VPB 3492, P. circumdentaria NCTC 12469T and P. salivosa VPB 3313) were used to identify members of this genus and quantification of these species was made from each cat using colony lifts and southern hybridisation from nitrocellulose membranes taken from replicate plates from each abscess sample. Twelve of the 15 abscesses yielded a variety of facultative and obligately anaerobic (FOA) bacterial species and members of the genus Porphyromounas were enumerated from each of these 12 abscesses. Of the 12 abscesses in which Porphyromonas species were detected, seven contained one species only (five contained only P. gingivalis and two contained only P. salivosa) three abscesses contained two species (both P. gingivalis and P. circumdentaria) and two abscesses contained all three species of Porphyromonas. These results show that members of the genus Porphyromonas are likely to be significant contributors to the purulent disease process in subcutaneous abscesses in cats.