Enterococci from pannon white rabbits: detection, identification, biofilm and screening for virulence factors

Abstract

<p>Properties of enterococci isolated from the Hungarian breed Pannon White were studied to spread knowledge regarding the properties of microbiota in rabbits from the basic research standpoint and to select a beneficial candidate for application in husbandry. Faeces from 113 Pannon White rabbits (mostly maternal line and some paternal line) were collected. They were sampled from rabbits varying in age and sex (82 kits, 6 does, 6 bucks, 19 adult rabbits), which were aged 2 wk (14 suckling rabbits), 6 and 8 wk (68 weaning and post-weaning rabbits), adult rabbits (31, one year). Faecal mixtures were sampled into sterile packs with faeces from 5-6 animals in each. The total count of enterococci from these Pannon White rabbits reached, on av. 5.28±0.29 colony forming units/g (log10). Among the 19 enterococci, 14 <em>E. faecalis</em> and 5 <em>E. faecium</em> were detected using 3 identification methods. The enterococci were mostly resistant to antibiotics. They were non-haemolytic, Dnase and urease negative. They did not form biofilm. They were free of the <em>hylEfm</em> gene and <em>IS16</em> genes; the most frequently detected genes were <em>gelE</em>, <em>efaAfm</em>, <em>efaAfs</em>. Based on these results, <em>E. faecium</em> EF9a was selected for further analysis.</p>