Clinic of Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, School of Health Sciences, University of Thessaly, Karditsa, Greece.
Laboratory of Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Lett Appl Microbiol. 2020 Apr;70(4):259-262. doi: 10.1111/lam.13267. Epub 2020 Jan 7.
An incident of sudden deaths in the breeding stock was reported from a farrow-to-finish commercial pig farm in Greece. The 8·4% of sows during lactation and gestation period presented anorexia, fever, haematuria, return-to-oestrus and sudden deaths (mortality rate: 2·3%). Blood and urine samples were collected from four diseased sows. Furthermore, swabs from urine bladders were collected from two dead sows and four culled sows at the slaughterhouse. Blood testing demonstrated mild leucocytosis and absence of azotaemia. Urinalysis revealed haematuria, proteinuria, bilirubinuria and active urine sediment with bacilli, epithelial cells and leucocytes, crystals and granular casts. Histopathological evaluation of the bladder demonstrated chronic active polypoid cystitis. The bacterial culture revealed the presence of Serratia liquefaciens. The antibiotic susceptibility testing showed high resistance to the most common antibiotics, with the highest sensitivity of the isolate towards quinolones. After the administration of a single dose of 7·5 mg kg body weight enrofloxacin intramuscularly, the mortality rate decreased to less than 0·5% along with a remarkable reduction in the severity of clinical signs. Based on our findings, S. liquefaciens induced severe clinical signs and deaths in sows, mainly due to urinary infection. Inadequate water sanitation might have been responsible for increased exposure to S. liquefaciens. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: In this study, the isolation of Serratia liquefaciens from the urinary tract of pigs associated with clinical signs and increased mortality was described for the first time. Serratia liquefaciens is an important cause of hospital-acquired human infections. The isolate in this study was resistant to the most common antibiotics. Therefore, the use of quinolones which are drugs of last resort for treatment of infections was the only therapeutic option. The presence of the resistant bacterium in the urinary tract raises concerns for its zoonotic potential.
一起育肥至出栏的商业猪场中发生了母猪突然死亡事件。8.4%的哺乳期和妊娠期母猪出现食欲不振、发热、血尿、发情期恢复和突然死亡（死亡率：2.3%）。从四只患病母猪身上采集了血液和尿液样本。此外，从两只死亡母猪和屠宰场的四只淘汰母猪身上采集了膀胱拭子。血液检测显示轻度白细胞增多和无氮血症。尿液分析显示血尿、蛋白尿、胆红素尿和活跃的尿沉渣，其中有杆菌、上皮细胞和白细胞、晶体和颗粒状管型。膀胱的组织病理学评估显示慢性活动性息肉状膀胱炎。细菌培养显示存在液化沙雷氏菌。抗生素敏感性测试显示对大多数常见抗生素的高度耐药性，而分离株对喹诺酮类的敏感性最高。在肌内注射 7.5 毫克/千克体重的恩诺沙星单次剂量后，死亡率下降到低于 0.5%，同时临床症状的严重程度显著降低。根据我们的发现，液化沙雷氏菌主要通过尿路感染引起母猪严重的临床症状和死亡。水卫生条件不足可能导致接触液化沙雷氏菌的机会增加。研究的意义和影响：在这项研究中，首次从与临床症状和死亡率增加相关的猪的泌尿道中分离出液化沙雷氏菌。液化沙雷氏菌是医院获得性人类感染的重要原因。本研究中的分离株对大多数常见抗生素具有耐药性。因此，使用喹诺酮类药物（治疗感染的最后手段）是唯一的治疗选择。该耐药菌存在于泌尿道中，引起了其人畜共患潜力的担忧。
