Objective—To evaluate whether the application of steam to a variety of surface types in a veterinary hospital would effectively reduce the number of bacteria. Sample—5 surface types.Procedures—Steam was applied as a surface treatment for disinfection to 18 test sites of 5 surface types in a veterinary hospital. A pretreatment sample was obtained by collection of a swab specimen from the left side of each defined test surface. Steam disinfection was performed on the right side of each test surface, and a posttreatment sample was then collected in the same manner from the treated (right) side of each test surface. Total bacteria for pretreatment and posttreatment samples were quantified by heterotrophic plate counts and for Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas spp, and total coliforms by counts on selective media. Results—Significant reductions were observed in heterotrophic plate counts after steam application to dog runs and dog kennel floors. A significant reduction in counts of Pseudomonas spp was observed after steam application to tub sinks. Bacterial counts were reduced, but not significantly, on most other test surfaces that had adequate pretreatment counts for quantification. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Development of health-care–associated infections is of increasing concern in human and veterinary medicine. The application of steam significantly reduced bacterial numbers on a variety of surfaces within a veterinary facility. Steam disinfection may prove to be an alternative or adjunct to chemical disinfection within veterinary practices.

Objective-To determine the efficacy of decontamination and sterilization of a disposable port intended for use during single-incision laparoscopy. Sample-5 material samples obtained from each of 3 laparoscopic surgery ports. Procedures-Ports were assigned to undergo decontamination and ethylene oxide sterilization without bacterial inoculation (negative control port), with bacterial inoculation (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Mycobacterium fortuitum) and without decontamination and sterilization (positive control port), or with bacterial inoculation followed by decontamination and ethylene oxide sterilization (treated port). Each port underwent testing 5 times; during each time, a sample of the foam portion of each port was obtained and bacteriologic culture testing was performed. Bacteriologic culture scores were determined for each port sample. Results-None of the treated port samples had positive bacteriologic culture results. All 5 positive control port samples had positive bacteriologic culture results. One negative control port sample had positive bacteriologic culture results; a spore-forming Bacillus sp organism was cultured from that port sample, which was thought to be an environmental contaminant. Bacteriologic culture scores for the treated port samples were significantly lower than those for the positive control port samples. Bacteriologic culture scores for the treated port samples were not significantly different from those for negative control port samples. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Results of this study indicated standard procedures for decontamination and sterilization of a single-use port intended for use during singleincision laparoscopic surgery were effective for elimination of inoculated bacteria. Reuse of this port may be safe for laparoscopic surgery of animals.

The present study had thrown the light on the in vitro antimicrobial potential of the ethanolic extract of three local medicinal plants; Coriandrum sativum (Coriander), Vitis vinifera (Grape seeds), and Zingiber officinale (Ginger) against the growth of pathogenic Staphylococcus aureus isolated from milk of some local cows infected with clinical mastitis. The antibacterial activity was carried out by using agar well diffusion technique in Mueller-Hinton agar. Four concentrations could be prepared from each plant extract, these concentrations were 50, 100, 200, and 400 mg/ml. The results were obtained by measured the zone of inhibition around the well that could be exhibited by each plant concentration that followed incubation of bacterial plates and expressed as mean±Standard error (SE). Ethanolic extract of Coriandrum sativum was possessed the strongest antibacterial effect among the tested plants, the results were: 29.44±1.17, 29.22±0.32, 27.77±0.99, and 26.11±1.27 mm at a concentration of 50, 100, 200, and 400 mg/ml respectively, Followed by Vitis vinifera extract which showed moderate values recorded as 20.88±0.77, 20.11±0.58, 18.22±0.36, and 20.88±0.35 mm at a concentration of 50, 100, 200, and 400 mg/ml respectively. The least antibacterial activity was exhibited by the extract of Zingiber officinale that produced the following inhibition zones; 15.11±0.80, 15.77±1.12, 17.66±0.33, and 17.55±0.44 mm at a concentration of 50, 100, 200, and 400 mg/ml respectively. On the other hand, S.aureus was variably susceptible to five of the used standard antibiotics; Lomefloxacin, Erythromycin, Amoxicillin, Ciprofloxacin, and Rifampin. Means of their inhibitory zones were; 29.44±0.41, 23.22±0.46, 21.77±0.36, 19.88±0.42, and 11.11±0.26 mm respectively. Whereas Cefprozil showed no effect against the growth of the tested organism.

Objective—To evaluate enterotoxin production, enterotoxin gene distribution, and genetic diversity of Staphylococcus aureus in milk obtained from cows with subclinical mastitis. Sample—Milk samples obtained from 350 cows (1,354 mammary glands) on 11 Wisconsin dairy farms. Procedures—Of 252 S aureus isolates obtained from 146 cows, 83 isolates (from 66 cows with subclinical mastitis) were compared genotypically by use of pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and via PCR identification of toxic shock syndrome toxin 1 (TSST-1) and classical S aureus enterotoxin genes (sea, seb, sec, sed, and see). Results—Among the 83 S aureus isolates, ≥ 1 enterotoxin genes were identified in 8 (9.6%). Enterotoxin gene distribution was as follows: TSST-1, 7 isolates (8.4%); sec, 5 isolates (6.0%); and sed, 2 isolates (2.4%). Enterotoxin genes sea, seb, and see were not identified. Twelve pulsotypes and 5 subtypes were identified among the 83 isolates; 5 of the 12 pulsotypes were represented by only 1 isolate. In cows of 1 herd, only a single S aureus pulsotype was detected; in cows on most other farms, a variety of pulsotypes were identified. One pulsotype was recovered from 4 farms (n = 23 cows) and another from 5 other farms (16). Isolates with an enterotoxin gene were represented by 6 pulsotypes. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—S aureus classical enterotoxins and TSST-1 were rarely recovered from milk samples obtained from cows with subclinical mastitis in Wisconsin. Diverse pulsotypes of S aureus were detected within and among farms, indicating that different strains of S aureus cause subclinical mastitis in dairy cows.

Objective—To compare results for 3 commercially available microbiological media plates with those for standard bacteriologic testing of bovine milk. Sample—Milk samples from postpartum cows and cows with a high somatic cell count (SCC) or clinical mastitis (CM). Procedures—Sample-ready Staphylococcus culture medium (SRSC) plates were used to detect Staphylococcus aureus in milk samples obtained from postpartum cows and cows with a high SCC or CM. Rapid coliform count (RCC) plates were used to detect coliforms in milk samples obtained from cows with CM. Aerobic count (AC) plates were used to detect streptococci in CM samples. Fresh mastitic milk samples were frozen and then thawed to evaluate the effects of freezing for the SRSC and RCC plates. The effects of dilution (1:10) of samples were determined. Agreement of results between the commercially available plates and standard bacteriologic testing was evaluated. Results—The ability of SRSC plates to detect S aureus in milk samples was highest with diluted samples from postpartum cows and cows with a high SCC or CM. Sensitivity of the RCC plate for detection of coliforms was highest with diluted mastitic milk samples. The AC plates had a poor positive predictive value for detection of streptococci in mastitic milk samples. Freezing increased S aureus detection. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Overall, the SRSC and RCC plates were accurate, were easy to use, and yielded results comparable to those of standard bacteriologic testing for the detection of S aureus and coliforms in bovine milk.

A 12-year-old female Tammar Wallaby (Macropus eugenii) died after a 6-day history of depression, anorexia, and coughing. The necropsy revealed pustules of varying sizes on the lung surface from which a pure culture of Staphylococcus aureus was ioslated. Histopathologically, the pulmonary nodules formed typical granulomatous inflammation. The center of the granulomatous foci consisted of a necrotic center and grain particles with gram positive cocci that were surrounded by eosinophilic club-like bodies containing Splendore-Hoeppli material.

This study was carried out to investigate the antibiotic resistance pattern of Enterococcus spp. and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) isolated from chicken feces. All isolates showed high resistance to erythromycin (E) and tetracycline (TE). Of the 63 Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) isolates, 73.0% were resistant to E and 98.4% to TE. Of the 44 Enterococcus faecium (E. faecium) isolates, 50.0% were resistant to E and 95.5% to TE. Of the 52 S. aureus isolates, 57.6% were resistant to E and 96.2% to TE. The prevalence of two and three drugs resistance pattern were 28.6% and 17.5% of E. faecalis, 40.9% and 25.0% of E. faecium and 38.5% and 23.1% of S. aureus, respectively.

Six primiparous Holstein cows were fed a Se-deficient diet, beginning at least 90 days before their first calving, and 6 other primiparous cows were given the same diet plus a supplement of 2 mg of Se/cow/d as sodium selenite. All cows were fed their diets for the duration of the experimental period. One uninfected quarter of each cow was injected with 25 microgram of Escherichia coli endotoxin at postpartum week 5. Leukocytes were isolated by centrifugation from milk collected at postinjection hour 16. Isolated cells were 92 +/- 3% neutrophils and were incubated with Staphylococcus aureus or E coli in a 1:300 ratio. Phagocytosis and intracellular killing by neutrophils were assessed after 0, 30, 60, and 90 minutes by a fluorochrome assay, using acridine orange. Viability of neutrophils was assessed by use of trypan blue. Superoxide anion production and hydrogen peroxide production by neutrophils also were determined. Cows fed Se-deficient diets had significantly (P < 0.05) lower blood Se concentration and blood glutathione peroxidase activity than cows fed Se-supplemented diets. Selenium status had no effect on the phagocytic capacity of neutrophils. Neutrophils obtained from cows fed Se-supplemented diets killed a significantly (P < 0.05) higher percentage of ingested bacteria than did neutrophils from cows fed the Se-deficient diet. Viability was significantly (P < 0.05) reduced by incubation with S aureus in neutrophils from both groups of cows, with neutrophils from Se-deficient cows having lower viability. Superoxide anion production did not differ significantly between neutrophils from the 2 groups, but extracellular hydrogen peroxide concentration was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in neutrophils harvested from milk of cows fed the Se-deficient diet.

Phagocytic and oxidative metabolic activities of bovine blood neutrophils were determined in the presence of glycolytic (NaF) and cytoskeletal (colchicine, cytochalasin B, and prostaglandin E1) inhibitors. Phagocytosis and postphagocytic oxidative metabolic activity, measured by nitroblue tetrazolium reduction, were determined using zymosan, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, or Streptococcus agalactiae. Sodium fluoride (1.25 micromolar to 1.25 mM concentrations) did not significantly (P greater than 0.05) inhibit phagocytosis of S aureus and Str agalactiae, whereas phagocytosis of zymosan and E coli was significantly (P less than 0.05) inhibited only at 1.25 mM concentration. Colchicine at 1.25 nM to 1.25 micromolar conce ntrations significantly inhibited phagocytosis of zymosan and E coli, but not of S aureus and Str agalactiae. Cytochalasin B at 1.25 nM to 1.25 micromolar concentrations significantly inhibited phagocytosis of zymosan and all 3 bacteria, whereas prostaglandin E1 was noninhibitory at similar concentrations. Nitroblue tetrazolium reduction, in general, was not significantly affected by NaF and cytoskeletal inhibitors.

A study was conducted to examine sources of variation introduced into a phagocytosis assay as a result of the isolation of neutrophils from bovine blood, including variation attributable to isolation of neutrophils from blood, variation between duplicate determinations of percentage phagocytosis, and the variation in the ability of neutrophils isolated from blood (over repeated collections from the jugular vein) to phagocytose. For the phagocytosis assay, jugular venous blood from each of 4 cows was divided into 2 equal portions. The neutrophils were isolated by lysis of red blood cells with 0.2% sodium chloride. The neutrophils (2 X 10(7)) were incubated in duplicate with 32P-labeled Staphylococcus aureus ([32P]SA; 2 X 10(8)) inskimmed milk samples (2.5% final concentration) prepared from 4 cows. This process was repeated thrice on neutrophils isolated from 4 cows at 2-week intervals. The proportions of variation in percentage of 32P-labeled S aureus phagocytosed between duplicate neutrophil isolations and between duplicate assay determinations were 0 and 1%. Differences among skimmed milk sources and among runs, using blood neutrophils taken at different times from the same donor cow, accounted for 62 and 36% of the total variation. The results indicated that variation arising from blood neutrophil isolation introduced into a phagocytosis assay within a single-day trial is of no concern. The large variation among skimmed milk sample sources indicated differences among cows in the ability of their milk to support phagocytosis. The variation in neutrophil isolations over time for any cow was considered too large to allow for evaluation of physiologic and environmental effects on phagocytosis of neutrophils isolated from blood.