Antimicrobial susceptibility of Clostridium perfringens isolated from piglets with or without diarrhea in Brazil

Abstract

The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined for 13 antibiotics against Clostridium perfringens isolated from Brazilian piglets. The collection of isolates was performed in June to October 2010. All isolates were susceptible to amoxicillin and ceftiofur, whereas most were resistant to tetracycline and lincomycin. Avilamycin and narasin were more effective against isolates from non-diarrheic than from diarrheic piglets. The other antimicrobials were less active in need of high concentrations to inhibit the growth of the C. perfringens type A. These results suggest the need for further studies evaluating molecular factors related to the antimicrobial resistance of C. perfringens. Key words: Clostridium perfringens, piglet, diarrhea, antibiotic.Clostridium perfringens type A is an anaerobe commonly isolated from the guts of piglets and is considered a normal inhabitant of piglet intestines. Current evidence suggests that this microorganism is involved in diarrhea in nursing piglets, especially those less than four days of age (17 The adoption of a high pig density in intensive systems and other recent changes in Brazilian pig farming have increased the infection pressure and the stress levels to which animals are subjected. Therefore, conditions facilitate the emergence of pathogenic agents that had once coexisted in equilibrium with the

Antimicrobial susceptibility of Clostridium perfringens isolated from domestic and wild animal species in Brazil

“…Commonly used against infections with multiresistant microorganisms, reports of C. perfringens resistance to vancomycin are rare (TANSUPHASIRI et al, 2005). Moreover, in contrast to these results, recent studies have reported florfenicol-resistant C. perfringens isolates from cattle, chickens and pigs (GHARAIBEH et al, 2010;SALVARANI et al, 2012;SLAVIĆ et al, 2011).…”

“…The beta-lactams are commonly used for the treatment of C. perfringens-associated diseases, and several studies have suggested that these antibiotics exhibit satisfactory results both in vitro and in vivo (MOODY et al, 1990). Although penicillin-resistant C. perfringens strains have previously been reported (TANSUPHASIRI et al, 2005), this event is rare and has not been identified in studies of C. perfringens strains isolated from foals, piglets and broiler chickens in Brazil (SALVARANI et al, 2012;SILVA et al, 2009SILVA et al, , 2013a). …”

“…The treatment of C. perfringens-associated diseases primarily involves antibiotic therapy (RAMSEY; TENNANT, 2010), and several studies have evaluated the in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility of C. perfringens to commonly used drugs (JOHANSSON et al, 2004;MARKS;KATHER, 2003;SALVARANI et al, 2012;SILVA et al, 2009;TANSUPHASIRI et al, 2005). However, these studies only assessed isolates from a single animal species and were restricted to strains from domestic animals.…”

“…Furthermore, some studies concerning the antimicrobial susceptibility of C. perfringens strains isolated from animals have shown a marked difference in resistance patterns for each country, regardless of the species examined, highlighting the importance of studies using local strains (SALVARANI et al, 2012;SLAVIĆ et al, 2011;SILVA et al, 2009). Despite this known importance, there are no studies concerning the antimicrobial susceptibility of C. perfringens isolates from animal species, such as cattle, buffaloes, goats and dogs, in Brazil.…”

Clostridium perfringens: a review of the disease in pigs, horses and broiler chickens

“…Finally, in cases of disease onset, injectable antibiotics are an option for the treatment of piglets; bacitracin, lincomycin, sulfa-trimethoprim and tylosin are commonly used in feed, whereas penicillin is an injectable drug commonly used in the field (SONGER & GLOCK, 1998). Studies from several countries, including Brazil, have shown that most C. perfringens isolates from piglets are resistant to tylosin and oxytetracycline, although resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics has not been detected until recently (TANSUPHASIRI et al, 2005;SLAVIĆ et al, 2011: SALVARANI et al, 2012.…”