A total of 52 samples (22 cloacal swabs and 30 pooled ovaries and oviducts) from hens with a history of a 25 to 40% drop in egg production from 30 flocks were examined for the isolation of infectious bronchitis virus in embryonated chicken eggs. Five isolates were obtained: three from cloacal swabs and two from reproductive organs. These isolates were identified and characterized on the basis of agar-gel-precipitation, hemagglutination, and neutralization tests and other physicochemical characteristics.

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Die Bakterienflora des oberen Respirationstraktes wild lebender Vogel in der Umgebung von Farmen in der Gegend von Ludhiana (Punjab, Indien) wurde untersucht. Von den 100 untersuchten Vogeln waren 63 Trager verschiedener Bakterienarten und insgesamt wurden 79 Bakterienstamme, die 16 verscfiiedenen Spezies angehorten, aus der Laryngo-Tracheal-Gegend dieser Tiere isoliert. Das Vorherrschen von pathogenen Bakterienarten wie Staph. aureus, Corynebacterium, Erysipelothrix, Klebsiella, Esch. coli, Pseudomonas und Pasteurella bei den wild lebenden Vogeln dieser Gegend weist darauf hin, daa sie fur die Ubertragung dieser Mikroorganismen von einer Quelle zur anderen verantwortlich sein konnten.

Resistance of E. coli to antibiotics is not only an obstacle for the control of this infection but also provides conditions for the transfer of drug resistance factors to other enterobacteria (1). The presence of drug resistant E. coli in the fowl slaughtered for meat is of public health significance (4). Because of the concentration of poultry population around Ludhiana E. coli infections among domestic fowl are on the increase and drug resistant strains are often isolated from E. coli infections. Material and MethodsA total of 202 E. coli strains were isolated from 183 diseased and 19 apparently healthy fowl. One hundred and twenty-eight of the E. coli were typed into 23 0 serogroups, 21 were untypable and 53 were rough. The susceptibility of each of the 202 strains was tested against ten antimicrobial agents using discs'. The drug susceptibility test was carried out as described by CRUICKSHANK et al. (2) with commercially available Mueller Hinton agar as test medium. The criteria of CRUICKSHANK et al.(2) based on the diameter of the zone of inhibition around a 6mm. disc was used to classify the cultures as "sensitive", "moderately sensitive" and "resistantP. Results and DiscussionThe results of the susceptibility tests of E. coli strains to various antimicrobial agents are given in Table 1. The majority of E. coli strains (95-100 per cent) from diseased and apparently healthy fowl were susceptible to chloramphenicol, nalidixic acid and neomycin and as such these are the drugs of choice for treatment of E . coli infections. Comparing the results of the susceptibility of E. coli from apparently healthy and diseased fowl it was '' Span Diagnostics, Surat and Assoc. Discs, Bombay.

Summary The soluble antigens of sheep pox virus prepared from virus grown on sheep skin were studied by the immunodiffusion technique in agar gel. These antigens produced a maximum of 10 precipitation bands when reacted against the hyperimmune serum prepared in sheep. Zusammenfassung Kurze Bemerkung zum Studium der löslichen Antigene von Schafpockenvirus mittels Immundiffusion Die löslichen Antigene von Schafpockenvirus, präpariert aus Dermomaterial vom Schaf, wurden mittels Immundiffusion im Agargel untersucht. Diese Antigene erzeugten maximal 10 Präzipitationsbanden in der Reaktion gegen Schafpockenhyperimmunserum vom Schaf.