Prevalence of Rotavirus, Escherichia Coli K99 and O157:h7 in Healthy Dairy Cattle Herds in Van, Turkey

Abstract

A survey was conducted to determine the prevalence of rotavirus, Escherichia coli K99 and O157:H7 in healthy dairy cattle herds in Van and environs. Turkey. Some of the cattle herds had a history of recurrent neonatal diarrhoea for previous years, and even while sampling was being done, some newborn calves were diarrhoeic. Three hundred and twelve faecal specimens from dairy cattle farms free of clinically apparent diarrhoea were tested both for the presence of rotaviruses by PAGE silver staining and for Escherichia coli K99 and O157:H7 by latex agglutination using specific antisera after the growth of each colony. The enteropathogenic characteristic of K99 and O157:H7 isolates was determined by rabbit ileal loop test. No rotavirus was detected from clinically normal cows, heifers or calves. Only 1 of 9 diarrhoeic calves was found to be positive for rotavirus. Out of the 235 E, coli isolates from non-diarrhoeic animals, 28 were positive for K99 and 4 for O157:H7. While 14 of 28 K99 isolates were found to be positive for enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC), 2 of 4 O157:H7 isolates were also positive for EPEC. An in vitro antibiotic sensitivity test of K99 and O157:H7 isolates indicated that the most sensitive antibiotics were enrofloxacin and danofloxacin.