Antibiotic susceptibility of Clostridium perfringens type D isolated from feces of goats

Abstract

Clostridium perfringens (C. perfringens) may cause diarrhea and enterotoxemia in adult and young livestock, leading to problems in the production and management of farms. Four hundred fecal samples were collected from 25 goat farms located in Gyeongsangbuk-do Province in the Republic of Korea. Sixteen C. perfringens strains were isolates from fecal samples, and the isolates were identified as type A (n=11) and type D (n=5). Additionally, α- and ε-toxin genes were detected in 16 and 5 strains by PCR, respectively, and the enterotoxin gene was presented in 2 strains. The antibiotic susceptibility test was performed using the disk diffusion method and E-test method. In the disk diffusion method, ampicillin (n=16) and chloramphenicol (n=15) were highly susceptible to 16 C. perfringens isolates. In the E-test method, ampicillin, amoxicillin, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid and meropenem were susceptible to more than 14 of 16 C. perfringens isolates. This study indicates that administration of antibiotics such as ampicillin, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid and meropenem can prevent and treat C. perfringens infections in goats.