Quinolone susceptibility and genetic characterization of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica isolated from pet turtles / 한국실험동물학회지

Turtle-borne Salmonella enterica owns significance as a leading cause in human salmonellosis. The current study aimed to determine the quinolone susceptibility and the genetic characteristics of 21 strains of S. enterica subsp. enterica isolated from pet turtles. Susceptibility of four antimicrobials including nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, and levofloxacin was examined in disk diffusion and MIC tests where the majority of the isolates were susceptible to all tested quinolones. In genetic characterization, none of the isolates were positive for qnr or aac(6')-Ib genes and no any target site mutations could be detected in gyrA, gyrB, and parC quinolone resistance determining regions (QRDR). In addition, neighbor-joining phylogenetic tree derived using gyrA gene sequences exhibited two distinct clads comprising; first, current study isolates, and second, quinolone-resistant isolates of human and animal origin. All results suggest that studied strains of S. enterica subsp. enterica isolated from pet turtles are susceptible to quinolones and genetically more conserved with regards to gyrA gene region.

Multilocus sequence typing analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from pet Chinese stripe-necked turtles (Ocadia sinensis) / 한국실험동물학회지

Our research sought to characterize the phylogeny of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from pet Chinese stripe-necked turtles (Ocadia sinensis) to better understand its evolutionary relation to other isolates and increase understanding of a potential zoonotic pathogen transmitted through direct contact with pet turtles. Thirty-one Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates were obtained from both immature and adult turtles sold in pet shops in Korea. To characterize the phylogenic position of Chinese stripe-necked turtle-borne P. aeruginosa relative to other strains, multilocus sequence typing (MLST) analysis was performed due to the accessibility and breadth of MLST databases. Seven housekeeping genes (acsA, aroE, guaA, mutL, nuoD, ppsA, and trpE) were sequenced and the results were compared with data from the MLST database. The genes were further used for phylogenetic analysis of P. aeruginosa using concatenated gene fragments. Both rooted and unrooted phylogenetic trees were generated. Eleven distinct sequence types were present within the isolates among which seven were new. Expanding an unrooted phylogenetic tree to include P. aeruginosa MLST sequences isolated from various other geographic locations and sources revealed a divergent cluster containing the majority of isolates obtained from turtles. This suggests that P. aeruginosa strains particularly well-adapted for inhabiting turtles occupy a distinct phylogenetic position.

Antimicrobial activity of essential oil of Eucalyptus globulus against fish pathogenic bacteria / 한국실험동물학회지

The antibacterial activities of the essential oil of Eucalyptus globulus (EOEG) was determined against 7 fish pathogenic bacteria (Edwardsiella tarda, Streptococcus iniae, S. parauberis, Lactococcus garviae, Vibrio harveyi, V. ichthyoenteri and Photobacterium damselae) obtained from farmed olive flounder. The inhibitory activity was evaluated by three methods: Disc diffusion method, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). According to the disc diffusion test, as the concentration of EOEG (5-40 µg) rises, the inhibitory zone increases in size. Compared with amoxicillin, tetracycline and chloramphenicol, EOEG showed similar antibacterial activity. The MIC of EOEG ranged from 7.8 to 125 mg/mL and MBC values ranged from 62 to 250 mg/mL. These results show that EOEG has antimicrobial activity against all seven bacteria, but there was no marked difference between each genus. From these results, it is suggested that EOEG can be used as an antimicrobial agent against fish bacterial diseases in the fish industry.

Prevalence of Salmonella spp. in pet turtles and their environment / 한국실험동물학회지

Pet turtles are known as a source of Salmonella infection to humans when handled in captivity. Thirty four turtles purchased from pet shops and online markets in Korea were examined to determine whether the turtles and their environment were contaminated with Salmonella spp. Salmonella spp. were isolated from fecal samples of 17 turtles. These isolates were identified as S. enterica through 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The isolation rate of Salmonella spp. from the soil and water samples increased over time. We concluded that a high percentage of turtles being sold in pet shops were infected with Salmonella spp., and their environments tend to become contaminated over time unless they are maintained properly. These results indicate that pet turtles could be a potential risk of salmonellosis in Korea.