Fatal infection in human flora-associated piglets caused by the opportunistic pathogen Klebsiella pneumoniae from an apparently healthy human donor.
Seventeen out of 24 human flora-associated (HFA) piglets died after oral administration of whole fecal flora from an apparently healthy human donor. The bacteria isolated from the organs of the infected piglets were identified as Klebsiella pneumoniae by bacteriological and biochemical tests and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. The identical K. pneumoniae strain was also isolated from the donor's fecal flora. All three neonatal piglets inoculated with K. pneumoniae from the donor's fecal flora developed severe diarrhea, with 2 eventually dying. This strongly suggests that the opportunistic pathogen K. pneumoniae from the human donor caused the fatal infection in the HFA piglets. The results underscore the importance of safety evaluation of the human donor's fecal flora for HFA piglet development.
Wei
Hua
H
Laboratory of Molecular Microbial Ecology and Ecogenomics, Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, P.R. China.
Shen
Jian
J
Pang
Xiaoyan
X
Ding
Dezhong
D
Zhang
Yan
Y
Zhang
Baorang
B
Lu
Haifeng
H
Wang
Tingting
T
Zhang
Chenhong
C
Hua
Xiuguo
X
Cui
Li
L
Zhao
Liping
L
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D007710:Klebsiella Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D007711:Klebsiella pneumoniae / Q000254:growth & development*; D023421:Models, Animal; D009894:Opportunistic Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*