Campylobacter fetus subspecies jejuni isolated from Syrian hamsters with proliferative ileitis

Two groups of Syrian hamsters received 3 weeks apart from a commercial supplier became ill and were found to have proliferative ileitis (transmissible ileal hyperplasia). Seventy-five of 200 hamsters from one group and 60 of 200 from another group were evaluated by bacteriological and histopathological techniques. Campylobacter fetus subspecies jejuni was isolated from all hamsters showing clinical signs of proliferative ileitis. The organism was recovered from fecal swabs and the ileum. Many asymptomatic animals had microscopic lesions characteristic of proliferative ileitis, and all except one were culture positive for C fetus subspecies jejuni. A group of 48 hamsters from another commercial source and free of the disease were culture negative for C fetus subspecies jejuni. These animals were inoculated by gavage with one of the following: extract of affected ileum (eight hamsters), 1 X 10(8) viable C fetus subspecies jejuni organisms (28 hamsters), or sterile saline (12 hamsters). Ileal-extract inoculated hamsters were culture positive and five of eight developed clinical signs of ileal hyperplasia. Pure-culture-inoculated hamsters had colonization of the ileum by C fetus subspecies jejuni but did not develop hyperplasia of the ileum. With this data and the tendency of C fetus subspecies jejuni to be associated with clinical enteric disease in a variety of animals and man, we suggest that C fetus subspecies jejuni may have an etiologic role in proliferative ileitis of hamsters. Other synergisms or predisposing factors also may be involved.