Eliminating organisms against Treponema hyodysenteriae in the gut of mice.

Ta:CF#1 mice lost their high susceptibility to Treponema hyodysenteriae infection after being mingled with Slc:ICR mice which had no susceptibility to the infection. Ta:CF#1 mice also lost susceptibility to the infection after being treated orally with fecal suspensions from Slc:ICR mice; treatment with heated (70 degrees C, 15 min) or filtered (pore size 0.2 micron) fecal suspensions did not cause a loss of susceptibility. Furthermore, even after the infection had established, Ta:CF#1 mice became free from T. hyodysenteriae and cecal lesions by oral treatment with the fecal suspensions. When Slc:ICR mice were treated with spectinomycin throughout the experiment, they became susceptible to the infection. These studies indicate that there exist eliminating organisms against T. hyodysenteriae in the gut of mice.