[Phosphatase activity of Pasteurella multocida strains isolated from poultry and mammals]

The qualitative test of Berber et al. was employed to determine the phosphatase activity of Pasteurella multocida strains from birds and mammals (cattle, pigs, and rabbits). Only eight out of a total of 50 Pasteurella strains isolated from birds (34 from cases of acute cholera, 12 - of atypic cholera and 4 - from oedema of the wattles ) proved positive (4 isolated from cases of acute cholera, and 4 isolated from cases of atypic cholera). The remaining 42 strains did not show phosphatase activity. A total of 96 P. multocida strains (37 from cattle, 27 from pigs, and 32 from rabbits) were studied. Positive phosphatase activity were shown to have 32 of the strains isolated from cattle, 26 of those isolated from pigs, and 29 of those from rabbits. In terms of percent 42 (84%) of the investigated strains isolated from birds were negative, and 16% were positive for phosphatase activity. Ninety-six as cited above, were the strains isolated from mammals, of which 90.6% were positive, and 9.4% were negative for phosphatase activity. The phosphatase activity of the Psateurella multocida strains may effectively be used to divide the strains purely biologically - as such isolated from mammals and such isolated from birds. The exceptions observed are likely to be due to migration of Pasteurella organisms from birds to mammals, and vice versa. The phosphatase activity is not shown to correlate with the pathogenicity of the respective strains for albino mice.