No abstract

Significance and Impact of the Study: Rhodococcus equi is a pathogenic cause of zoonotic diseases with a broad host range. This study demonstrated that virulence R. equi existed in human isolates before 1994 and reaffirmed that equine-associated pVAPA-positive, porcine-associated pVAPB-positive and bovine-or caprine-associated pVAPN-positive R. equi are widely spread globally. This study adds important information that domestic animals are major sources of human infection, thus adversely affecting public health.