THE PATHOGENICITY OF HEMOPHILUS-SOMNUS IN VARIOUS LABORATORY-ANIMAL SPECIES

  • 1 January 1984
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 48  (1) , 27-29
Abstract
As a test of susceptibility of laboratory animals to the causative organism of thrombotic meningoencephalitis of cattle, young mice, rats, rabbits, piglets, chicks and hamsters were exposed to the virulent strain 43826 of H. somnus i.v. and i.p. Only the hamsters developed lesions attributable to the organism. Of 10 hamsters, 2 developed an acute orchitis and epididymitis characterized by necrosis and artheritis. The fact that Histophilus ovis, a cause of epididymitis in Australian and New Zealand rams, is apparently very closely related to Haemophilus somnus suggests that the hamster may be a useful laboratory model to study this disease.