[Drug resistance of coagulase-negative staphylococci of animal origin depending on the source of the isolation and species classification of the strains].

Drug resistance of 271 strains of coagulase negative staphylococci isolated mainly from the upper respiratory tract and skin of healthy animals (cows, sheep, swine, hen, monkey, mink, sable and fox) was studied. Benzylpenicillin, streptomycin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, erythromycin, oleandomycin, neomycin, monomycin, kanamycin and novobiocin and heavy metal salts, such as mercurous chloride and cadmium sulfate were used in the study. Unlike coagulase positive staphylococci isolated from the same sources, the coagulase negative strains were more frequently resistant to novobiocin (a specific feature of a number of the strains) and tetracycline and much less frequently resistant to benzylpenicillin and streptomycin. The differences in the drug resistance of the coagulase negative staphylococci were more often associated with the species taxonomic position than with the source of their isolation. The highest number of the strains resistant to all the antibiotics tested except novobiocin belonged to Staph. epidermidis and the lowest number of the strains resistant to all the antibiotics tested except novobiocin belonged to Staph. xylosus, Staph. sciuri, Staph. simulans and Staph. hyicus.