(Pseudoglanders)
- Caused by Pseudomonas (Malleomyces) pseudomallei, Closely related to P. mallei in horses
- Causes disease in sheep, goats and pigs, occasionally other species
- Starts as a pyemia and localises in varius tissues, including the lung as abscessation
- Encapsulated abscesses contain yellow, caseous or creamy pus
- Pathogenesis:
- Infection via ingestion, inhalation or skin wounds from environment
- Exotoxin, dermonecrotic protease and lecithinase implicated in pathogenicity
- Strain virulence and host immunosuppression important
- Clinical infections:
- Opportunistic infection with stress and immunosuppression predisposing to disease
- Abscesses develop in many organs including lungs, spleen, liver, joints, CNS, upper respiratory tract
- Chronic, debilitating, progressive disease with long incubation period
- Many animal species susceptible
- Referred to as pseudoglanders in horses
- Diagnosis:
- Specimens: pus from abscesses, affected tissues, blood
- Fluorescent antibody technique on tissue smears
- Blood agar and MacConkey agar plates, incubated aerobically
- Colonies have musty smell
- Lactose fermentation on MacConkey
- Slide agglutination
- ELISA, complement fixation and indirect haemagglutination tests for serum antibodies
- Treatment/control: slaughter of infected animals where exotic
- Pneumonia and arthritis are the most common presentation