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Enterobacteria of emerging pathogenic significance from clinical cases in man and animals and detection of toads and wall lizards as their reservoirs

  • Medical Microbiology
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Abstract

A total of 416 samples comprising faecal samples from diarrhoeic cases of man, calves, sheep and goats, and urine samples from patients with urinary tract infections, were examined for the presence of enterobacteria of emerging pathogenic significance.Citrobacter freundii from 20,C. intermedius biotype-a from four,Serratia marcescens (serotype 05:H13, bactericin type 16) from one andErwinia herbicola from two human stool samples were isolated. Only two urine samples yieldedC. freundii. Citrobacter freundii was isolated from 10 andC. intermedius biotype-a from two calves. From sheep and goats, two isolates ofC. freundii and three ofC. intermedius biotype-a were obtained. None of these samples yieldedEdwardsiella tarda orYersinia enterocolitica. The examination of 99 toads and 145 wall lizards revealed that toads were reservoirs forC. freundii, C. intermedius biotype-a andSalmonella brijbhumi, whereas wall lizards were reservoirs forC. freundii, C. intermedius biotype-a,E. herbicola, Enterobacter cloacae andSalmonella spp. These bacteria were present in the range of 2.0 × 106 to 6.0 × 1011 organisms per gram of intestinal contents. In addition, toads were carriers forEdwardsiella tarda (new serotypes 04167:H1 and 05159: nonmotile). None of the toads and wall lizards proved positive forC. intermedius biotype-b (C. koseri),S. marcescens andY. enterocolitica. C. freundii, C. intermedius biotype-a,E. herbicola andS. marcescens were resistant to penicillin and erythromycin whereasE. tarda isolates were also resistant to gentamycin, neomycin, colistin and sulfamethaxazole.

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  1. Department of Veterinary Bacteriology and Hygiene, Haryana Agricultural University, Hissar, India

    Ashok Kumar & V. K. Sharma

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  1. Ashok Kumar
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Kumar, A., Sharma, V.K. Enterobacteria of emerging pathogenic significance from clinical cases in man and animals and detection of toads and wall lizards as their reservoirs. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 44, 219–228 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00643224

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