Pasteurella multocida

Introduction

P.multocida is a very small, non-motile, gram-negative, ovoid, coccoid or short rod. It is aerobic and facultatively anaerobic species of the Pasteurella genus. It forms large, grey colonies on blood agar and is not haemolytic. It does not grow on MacConkey. It has five capsular serotypes, A,B,D,E and F and can be a primary and secondary pathogen. It is responsible for secondary infections following primary viral and mycoplasmal infections, especially in the lungs, for example during Enzootic pneumonia of calves and pigs. It can cause vascular fragility, leading to haemorrhagic disease. It is also involved in subcutaneous abscesses due to cat bites. It causes respiratory disease in rabbits.

Type A

Type A is a commensal in the upper respiratory tract of animals in the UK. It is a primary pathogen in avian cholera - a septicaemia in chickens and turkeys. It is a secondary pathogen commonly responsible for dog and cat bite wound infections in humans and animals. It is also involved in feline pyothorax and cellulitis. Some strains are involved in Atrophic Rhinitis of pigs, and produce osteolytic toxin. It is also involved in snuffles in rabbits, a mucopurulent rhinosinusitis and can cause pneumonia and mastitis in sheep. In cattle it is associated with pneumonic pasteurellosis, as well as enzootic pneumonia in calves.

Type B

Type B causes Haemorrhagic Septicaemia of cattle in Southern Europe and Asia.

Type D

Type D is a primary and secondary pathogen. It causes Atrophic Rhinitis along with Bordetella bronchiseptica in pigs. Pasteurella multocida adhere to epithelium damaged by Bordetella bronchiseptica and produce an osteolytic toxin (Pmt), which stimulates osteoclasts, inducing bone resorption of the nasal turbinates.

Type E

Type E causes African Bovine Haemorrhagic Septicaemia.

Pasteurella multocida Learning Resources
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