Mycobacterial infection of pigs in Croatia.
During a five-year period (2000 to 2004) 74,342 pigs were tested by the intradermal tuberculin test in Croatia. Of them, 248 (0.33%) pigs were positive and 91 (0.12%) were found to be suspicious in 7 out of the 13 farms included in the study. Gross pathological changes characteristic of tuberculosis were observed in tuberculin-positive and/or suspicious swine. Mycobacterium was isolated from the lymph nodes of 183 out of 234 swine (78.2%). For better epidemiological understanding, isolates were typed by conventional methods, PCR and hybridisation. The results show that most of the isolates belonged to the Mycobacterium avium complex (175 isolates, 95.7%). Other isolates belonged to M. fortuitum (6 isolates, 3.3%), M. chelonae (1 isolate, 0.5%), and M. peregrinum (1 isolate, 0.5%). Isolated strains of the M. avium complex were identified as M a. avium (37 isolates, 21.1%) and M. a. hominissuis (138 isolates, 78.9%).
Cvetnić
Z
Z
Croatian Veterinary Institute Zagreb, Savska cesta 143, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia. cvetnic@veinst.hr
Spicić
S
S
Benic
M
M
Katalinić-Janković
Vera
V
Pate
Mateja
M
Krt
B
B
Ocepek
M
M
D000818:Animals; D017523:Croatia / Q000453:epidemiology; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D009161:Mycobacterium / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D014374:Tuberculin Test / Q000662:veterinary; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*
D004269:DNA, Bacterial