The study was carried out in Polish goat population to estimate the prevalence of the nasal cavity infection with various staphylococcal species including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), investigate the potential permissive role of small ruminant lentivirus (SRLV) infection and determine the level of clonality of S. aureus nasal isolates. Nasal swabs and blood samples were collected from 1300 clinically healthy adult goats from 21 Polish goat herds. Blood samples were serologically screened for SRLV. Staphylococci were isolated from nasal swabs and identified using classical microbiological methods, MALDI-TOF, multiplex-PCR, and their clonality was assessed using PFGE. Antimicrobial resistance was determined on the basis of minimum inhibitory concentration and by demonstration of the presence of the mecA gene encoding the multiplex-PCR PBP2a protein and of the five main types of staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec. The apparent prevalence of staphylococcal and S. aureus infection of the nasal cavity was 29.1% (CI 95%: 26.9%, 31.5%) and 7.3% (CI 95%: 6.1%, 8.8%), respectively. No relationship was found between the SRLV-infection and the presence of any staphylococcal species including S. aureus (p=0.143). Only 9.8% of S. aureus isolates were resistant to amoxicillin/clavulanic acid and 5.9% to chloramphenicol and ciprofloxacin. All tested isolates proved to be phenotypically and genotypically sensitive to methicillin, which yielded the apparent prevalence of MRSA of 0% (CI 95%: 0%, 7.0%). S. aureus isolates show high genetic similarity within goat herds, however vary considerably between herds. Goats do not appear to be an important source of S. aureus for humans in Poland.
Concentrations of four trace elements, copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn) and seleni- um (Se), have thus far proven to be affected by lentiviral infections in people and rhesus monkeys. As small ruminant lentivirus (SRLV) infection is responsible for one of the most important goat diseases, caprine arthritis-encephalitis (CAE), we evaluated serum and liver concentrations of Cu, Zn, Mn, Se in goats severely affected by symptomatic CAE and compared them with litera- ture reference intervals. Serum and liver samples of dairy goats euthanized due to severe clinical form of CAE were collected and screened for the concentration of Cu, Zn, Mn (54 serum sam- ples, 22 liver samples), and Se (36 serum samples, 22 liver samples) using flame atomic absorption spectrometry for Cu, Zn, Mn and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy for Se. In both serum and liver samples concentration of Zn was the highest, followed by Cu concentration, and then by Mn and Se. There was no relationship between serum and liver concentrations of trace elements. Liver concentrations of all four trace elements and serum Cu concentration fell within literature reference intervals, although liver Se concentration was mainly in the lower marginal range (between 0.4 and 1.0 mg/L). Serum Zn concentration was elevated (>1.2 mg/L) in all goats, serum Mn concentration was elevated (>0.04 mg/L) in 42 (78%) goats and serum Se concentra- tion was elevated (>1.6 mg/L) in 13 (36%) goats. Concluding, severe symptomatic CAE does not appear to be associated with the level of any of the four trace elements.