Actinobacillus (A.) pleuropneumoniae is the causative agent of pleuropneumonia which is one of the most important respiratory diseases in pigs worldwide. A total of 32 A. pleuropneumoniae isolates from diseased pigs during 2008 to 2010 were serotyped by polymerase chain reaction method. The susceptibility of the isolates to 13 antimicrobial agents were determined by disk diffusion test. In all the 32 isolates examined in this study, serotype 5 (16 isolates: 50%), 1 (7 isolates: 21.9%), 2 (5 isolates: 15.6%) and 12 (1 isolate: 3.1%) were found. Of all tested antimicrobial agents, resistance to oxytetracycline was found in 96.9% of isolates, followed by resistance to amikacin (81.2%), neomycin (68.7%), kanamycin (53.1%), penicillin (50.0%), gentamicin (43.7%), florfenicol (25.0%), ampicillin (18.7%), colistin (9.4%), trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, ceftiofur (8.3%), amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (3.1%) and enrofloxacin (0%). Oxytetracycline or florfenicol-resistant isolates were examined for the presence of resistance gene. Among the 31 oxytetracycline-resistant isolates, tetB, tetH and tetO genes were detected in 22 (71%), 8 (26%) and 1 (3%) isolates, respectively. The floR genes were detected in 8 (100%) of the 8 florfenicol-resistant A. pleuropneumoniae isolates.

Pneumocystis (P.) carinii is an opportunistic fungal pathogen of many animal species and human, which can cause fatal pneumonia in immunocompromised individuals. Three 100-day-old pigs with progressive atrophy, anorexia and respiratory distress were submitted to the Cheju National University for diagnosis. Grossly, the lungs were enlarged with rubbery consistency. Histopathologically, the lungs were characterized by diffuse interstitial pneumonia with thickening of alveolar septa due to infiltration of macrophages and lymphocytes.

This study was aimed to obtain the anatomical information on the location of ostia of left and right coronary artery in 3 weeks old and 6 months old hybrid swine. The each intercommissural distance of 6 months group was twice than 3 weeks old group. The largest sinus was right aortic sinus followed by left and posterior sinus. All left coronary artery ostia in left aortic sinus were located near the right aortic sinus as well as lower than the ostia of right one.

A 7-month-old brown pig with a discoid and pedunculate mass measuring 14.0×12.5×2.5 cm on the skin of the right shoulder was noted at the slaughter house in Jeju. The surface of mass approximately 7×4 cm was interfaced with skin. The color of mass with firm consistency was mainly black and partially white on cut surface. Histopathologically, numerous unencapsulated endocrine-like cellular nodules of epithelioid cell type with abundant intracytoplasmic black pigment, melanin, were occupied in dermis and subcutis.

Cytogenetic and hematological analysis was performed in peripheral blood obtained from pigs bred in the high background radiation areas (HBRA) (Cheongwon-gun and Boeun-gun) and a control area. The frequencies of gamma-ray induced micronuclei (MN) in the cytokinesis-blocked (CB) lymphocytes at several doses were measured in three pigs. An estimated dose of radiation was calculated by a best fitting linear-quadratic model based on the radiation-induced MN formation from the swine lymphocytes exposed in vitro to radiation over the range from 0 mGy to 1,969 mGy.

The purpose of this study was to establish a rapid, reliable diagnostic method detecting Encephalomyocarditis virus(EMCV) RNA in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues of EMCV naturally infected pigs by cDNA probe of EMC K3, the EMCV strain isolated from Korea. Using a biotin-labelled nick translated probe for the cDNA marker. We made up for some defects of radiolabeled method. In situ hybridization(ISH) technique, differently from theother nucleic acid hybridization methods, is able to detect the virus genome specifically in the state of the intact shapes of cells and/or tissues. We succeeded in performing the experiment to detect the EMCV within 1~2 hours usign the MicroProbeTM capaillary action system. In this study, we ovserved highly specific positive sighals of red color by staining the paraffinembedded tissue sections of naturally EMCV-infected pig organs or tissues, including brain, heart, kidney and lacrimal gland with the Fast Red TR salt/Naphtol phosphate chromogen. The results suggested that this ISH method is considered as a highly sensitive and reliable tool for molecular biologic diagnosis of the EMC viral disease.

Swine plasminogen is not activated by staphylokinase of Staphylococcus aureus. In this study, the activation of swine plasminogen by staphylokinase of Staph hyicus subsp. hyicus was investigated and the effect of EDTA(disodium) on plasminogen activation was also studied. When the activation of swine plasminogen by staphylokinase of Staph hyicus subsp. hyicus was examined in fresh swine plasma, swine plasminogen could be weakly activated. However, when EDTA was added to the swine plasma, plasminogen activation was markedly enhanced, but this enhancement was not observed on bovine fibrin-dog plasminogen agar plate containing EDTA. Chicken and bovine plasminogens were not activated by staphylokinase of Staph hyicus subsp. hyicus. Using fresh swine plasma agar containing 0.07% EDTA, staphylokinase activity was detected in 96.3% of Staph hyicus subsp. hyicus strains isolated from pigs and in none of the chicken and bovine strains.

A nation wide sero-epidemiological survery of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome(PRRS) was carried out to analyze the current status of the PRRS virus infections in the field using the indirectr immunofluorescent antibody assay(IFA) with the field isolate PL96-1. Since the first report of the antibody detection to PRRSV in 1993, the prevalence of seropositive pigs has increased dramatically and the data indicate that over 21% of the pigs and around 60% of the farms showed seropositives to the PRRS virus. A slightly higher positive rate was recognized in breeders than fattenings and it might be due to the higher age at the time of testings. No significant regionl defferences were detected in the sero-epidemiological survey. Higher sero-positive rate in growers indicatesthat PRRSV infection in the field was common after weaning(around 40 days). However, the number of seropositive pigs were declined in fattening pigs. Sows showed around 26% of sero-positive rate that there is a higher chance of continuous virus circulation in the infected farms. Low rate of sero-positivity in boars(9.8%) implies that there is high demand in proper controlmeasures to prevent virus spreading through breeding procedures such as natural or artificial insemination Therefore it was concluded that PRRSV infection in domestic swine herds is endemic and the positive rate and economic loses will be increased by spontaeous infections in naive farms.

This study was designed to quantitative assay of cellular receptor globotriosyl ceramide(Gb₃) and globotetraosyl ceramide(Gb₄) and to determine binding affinity of the receptors for Shigatoxin 2e in difference with day olds of pig. The amount of Gb₃ and Gb₄ extracted from each swine tissue were detected in order of spleen, ileocecum, kidney, and jejunum. The amount of Gb₃ and Gb₄ extracted from each swine ileocecum and jejunum in different day old swine were detected in order of 24, 6, 98, 12 and 35, but the difference of amount was not significant.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) causes various clinical signs in human and animals, and has been indicated as a global enteropathogen with zoonotic importance. In this study, the feces of healthy pigs were collected from the slaughtered pigs of Daejon abattoir during the period from December 2001 to October 2002. Of 326 specimens, 13 STEC were confirmed by culture, PCR and colony hybridization. The isolates were further studied for toxin types, pathogenic factors, plasmid profiles, and antimicrobial resistance to characterize the genetic and toxigenic properties.