Effects of erythromycin-inactivating Lactobacillus crop flora on blood levels of erythromycin given orally to chicks.
Germ-free, day-old chickens were colonized with a Lactobacillus fermentum strain isolated from poultry which was able to inactivate in vitro erythromycin and other macrolide and lincosamide antibiotics. Similar control chickens were colonized with a non-degrading L. fermentum strain. Only in chickens colonized with the non-degrading strain were blood levels considered to be therapeutically active achieved with erythromycin in the drinking water. Five groups of broiler chickens of different age originating from three farms all possessed an erythromycin-degrading crop flora. In none of these were therapeutic blood levels attained when erythromycin was given in the drinking water.
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D002645:Chickens / Q000097:blood* / Q000382:microbiology; D003426:Crop, Avian / Q000382:microbiology*; D004326:Drinking; D004917:Erythromycin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism; D007778:Lactobacillus / Q000378:metabolism*; D013045:Species Specificity
D004917:Erythromycin; C025000:erythromycin thiocyanate