@article{1338,
  keywords = {porcine abscessed pneumonia, horse, hamster, Persian fallow deer, co-infections, MALDI-TOF MS, bacteriological differentiation},
  author = {S Stalb and E Hiller and J Rau and T Eisenberg and R Sting},
  title = {Pathological significance of Helcococcus ovis and Helcococcus kunzii in veterinary medicine},
  abstract = {Helcococcus (H.) ovis and H. kunzii have rarely been described as veterinary pathogens. This is the first report of the isolation of H. ovis in pure culture from a lung of a piglet suffering from severe abscessed pneumonia, which prompted us to clarify the pathological significance of helcococci in animals. In total, 144 H. ovis and eight H. kunzii strains were isolated from clinical specimens or from organs during post mortem examinations from 2010 to 2017. Suspicious colonies were verified by MALDI-TOF MS and/or by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Additionally, selected isolates were compared phenotypically using FT-IR spectroscopy and biochemistry using VITEK2-compact®, but neither method allowed discrimination of the helcococci isolates. In decreasing order of frequency, H. ovis was recovered from cattle, sheep, pigs and one horse. H. kunzii was isolated for the first time in a hamster and a Persian fallow deer. H. ovis isolates often originated from lungs, independent of the animal species and from reproductive organs of cattle. In the majority of cases, H. ovis was recovered together with Trueperella pyogenes and Fusobacterium necrophorum and in sheep additionally with Mannheimia haemolytica. In conclusion, helcococci can affect different organ systems in a broad range of hosts. According to its principal target sites, H. ovis has pathogenic potential in respiratory disease in different animal species, as well as for reproductive disorders in cattle. In this context and with its frequent recovery from mixed culture, particular care must be taken to detect helcococci in animal diagnostic specimens.},
  year = {2018},
  journal = {Berliner und Münchener Tierärztliche Wochenschrift},
  volume = {131},
  month = {06/2018},
  publisher = {Schlütersche Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG},
  address = {Hannover},
  issn = {0005-9366},
  doi = {10.2376/0005-9366-17106},
  language = {English},
}