Concentrations of penicillin, streptomycin, and spiramycin in bovine udder tissue liquids.

Concentrations of benzylpenicillin and spiramycin adipate were determined in bovine plasma and milk and in lymph draining the udder tissue after IM or IV administration. Combined benzylpenicillin and dihydrostreptomycin sulfate concentrations were also determined in the same fluids after intramammary injection. A superficial parenchymal lymph vessel, afferent to the supramammary lymph gland of the left quarters, was cannulated with a polythene catheter from which the lymph was allowed to drain freely. After injections of 9.5 mg of benzylpenicillin/kg of body weight IM, a mean peak concentration (PC) in lymph (3.7 micrograms/ml), constituting 77% of the PC in plasma (4.8 micrograms/ml), was obtained 0.5 to 1 hour after PC in the plasma. The benzylpenicillin lymph concentration was close to that in plasma for about 7 hours after injection. Thereafter, the benzylpenicillin lymph concentration continued to exceed that in plasma, but not that in milk. After IV administration of spiramycin adipate, the lymph concentration was almost identical to that in plasma. After intramammary injection of procaine benzylpenicillin (400 mg), in combination with the same amount of dihydrostreptomycin sulfate, into 2 udder quarters each, mean PC in the lymph of 3.5 micrograms/ml and 8.4 micrograms/ml, respectively, were obtained 6 hours after injection. In plasma, the mean PC of benzylpenicillin (0.07 micrograms/ml) and of dihydrostreptomycin sulfate (0.85 micrograms/ml) were obtained after 4 and 6 hours, respectively. In milk from the nontreated quarters, a mean concentration of 5 ng of benzylpenicillin/ml was obtained, whereas dihydrostreptomycin sulfate (greater than or equal to 0.3 microgram/ml) was not detected.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)