The use of biotyping of Enterobacteriaceae as an evaluation of the isolation efficacy of laboratory animals.

2 sets of data are given of biotyping the Enterobacteriaceae from the faecal flora of SPF rats and cats housed with different isolation arrangements. The method is presented as an evaluation of the isolation efficiency of laboratory animals. Biotypes which were determined on almost every occasion belonged to the resident flora of the animals while those found occasionally represented contamination. Contaminating bacteria are cleared from an SPF breeding unit by colonization resistance and the continuous efflux of animals from the unit. A parameter of isolation efficacy is the number of different biotypes determined in time. With optimal isolation arrangements a stable bacterial flora of permanently colonized biotypes is obtained in the animals.