Isolation and Characterization of Staphylococci from External Auditory Meatus of Dogs with or without Otitis Externa with Special Reference to Staphylococcus schleiferi subsp. coagulans Isolates

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Staphylococci were isolated from the external auditory meatus in 14 (48.3%) of 29 dogs affected with otitis externa (OE dogs) and 28 (68.3%) of 41 dogs without OE (non-OE dogs). Twenty-two OE isolates were identified as belonging to 12 species, and 42 non-OE isolates were identified as belonging to 13 species. The predominant species found in both OE and non-OE isolates were S. intermedius, and S. epidermidis. Thirty-eight (59.4%) of 64 isolates were resistant to one or more of the 17 antimicrobial agents tested. Resistance to PCG and ABPC was most frequent. S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans, a recent etiologic agent of canine OE, was isolated from OE and non-OE dogs. All of the 5 S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans isolates showed typical characteristics. No clear difference in the extracellular enzyme or toxin profiles, nor in the PFGE patterns, was demonstrated between the OE and non-OE isolates of S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans. A new PCR primer set specific for 16S rDNA was designed to identify strains of S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans. The amplified fragment was detected in all of the 5 isolates as well as the type strain GA 211 (=JCM 7470) and a reference strain GA 11, but was not detected in any strains of the related species, S. aureus, S. intermedius and S. hyicus. The PCR may allow a simple, rapid and precise identification of S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans, in addition to the standard tube test for free coagulase. Otitis externa (OE) is common in dogs and is a disease of multifarious etiology. The yeast and bacterium most frequently isolated from OE dogs are Malassezia pachydermatis and Staphylococcus intermedius [2,11,20,23], respectively. Staphylococci including S. intermedius are present in the nasal vestibulum, external auditory meatus, intestinal and urinogenital tracts, anal mucosa, and on the skin surface of dogs. Knowledge of the composition of the normal staphylococcal flora in the external auditory meatus is an important factor in determining the etiology and epidemiology of staphylococcal OE in dogs. However, the ecology of the staphylococci inhabiting the external auditory meatus of healthy dogs has not yet been studied sufficiently.Determination of the susceptibility of Staphylococcus species to antimicrobial agents is of great importance in the selective use of chemotherapeutics, the evaluation of new antimicrobial agents, and in the development of drug resistance through continuous use of antimicrobial agents against field isolates. However, there is little information concerning the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of Staphylococcus species isolated from OE and non-OE dogs in Japan [18].Recently, coagulase-positive S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans has also been isolated from the external auditory meatus of OE dogs [8]. Subsequently, the organism was cultured from dogs with pyoderma [1,5,7] and from a finger-wound infection in a human patient [21]. Recognition of the clinical importance of S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans in veterinary and human medicine is growing. To our knowledge...

Multiplex-PCR Method for Species Identification of Coagulase-Positive Staphylococci

“…coagulans, S. hyicus, S. lutrae, S. delphini, and S. pseudintermedius (10,12). In addition to S. aureus, the other CoPS species can cause severe infections compared with those caused by coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) (2,13,16,22,25,28,32).…”

Molecular detection of exfoliative toxin in Staphylococcus intermedius isolates from dogs with pyoderma

“…Canine pyoderma is caused almost exclusively by S. intermedius (12,20). However, the increasing prevalence of S. aureus infections and the emergence of a new species like S. schleiferi force the veterinary community to become more vigilant to prevent zoonosis (33,35). Other Staphylococcus species isolated from canine pyodermas and dermatitis were S. hyicus, S. epidermidis, S. xylosus, S. simulans, S. hominis (20,21), and S. chromogenes, S. sciuri, S. saprophyticus, S. capitis (15), respectively.…”

Staphylokokken-Enterotoxine: Bildung, Eigenschaften und Nachweis

“…als mutmaßlicher Wundinfektionserreger nachgewiesen (Vandenesch et al, 1994). Enterotoxinbildungsvermögen (SEA-SED) ließ sich bei Untersuchungen an fünf Isolaten nicht nachweisen (Yamashita et al, 2005). Foster et al (1997) …”