Conjunctival cytological examination, bacteriological culture, and antimicrobial resistance proifles of healthy Mediterranean buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) from Southern Italy
- Author:
Lamagna Barbara
;
Pasolini Pia Maria
;
Nizza Sandra
;
Mallardo Karina
;
Formicola Maurizio
;
Costagliola Alessandro
;
Fatone Gerardo
;
Fiorito Filomena
;
Paciello Orlando
;
Martino De Luisa
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
Mediterranean buffalo;
Conjunctival cytological examination;
Bacteriologic culture;
Antimicrobial resistance
- From:Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine
2015;(11):845-849
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Objective:To assess normal conjunctival cytological and bacteriological/fungal flora features in the Mediterranean buffalo (Bubalus bubalis).
Methods:Swabs were taken from the inferior conjunctival sac of both eyes of 57 healthy female buffaloes aged 24-36 months, with no evidence of ocular disease, farmed in Campania region (Southern Italy), for microbiological analysis. Conjunctival eye specimens of both eyes were subsequently obtained by a cyto-brush, for cytological analysis. The antimicrobial susceptibility of bacterial isolates was also determined using the disk-diffusion method on Mueller Hinton agar plates.
Results: Cytological examination of conjunctival swab specimens (114 eyes) revealed epithelial cells (basal, intermediate, columnar and superficial) in all samples, whereas neutrophils, lymphocytes and plasma cells were present in 70%, 10%and 2%of samples, respectively. Microorganisms, for a total of 261 aerobic bacteria and 6 fungi, were isolated from 112/114 conjunctival samples (98.25%;95%confidence interval (CI):93.18–99.70). Only two conjunctival swabs did not yield bacteria and/or fungi (2/114, 1.75%;95% CI:0.30–6.82). Gram-positive aerobes were most commonly cultured (181/261, 69.35%;95%CI: 63.31–74.81), with Enterococcus faecium and Staphylococcus lentus predominating. Escherichia coli was the most frequently isolated as Gram-negative bacteria (80/261, 30.65%;95%CI:25.19–36.69). The antimicrobial resistance patterns of the isolated bacteria showed amoxycillin/clavulanic acid and cephalothin as the least sensitive antibiotics for both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
Conclusions: These results provided first information on normal conjunctival ocular microflora and cytological features in Mediterranean buffalo.
