Isolation and identification of Mycoplasma mycoides cluster strains from goats in Chongqing, China

In order to evaluate the prevalence of the Mycoplasma mycoides cluster in goats in Chongqing, China, an epidemiological survey in this area was carried out. A total of 68 samples were subjected to bacteria isolation on Hartley’s medium. Four isolates (three from lung tissue and one from nasal discharges) were recovered from the samples and identified as the Mycoplasma species by their morphological and biochemical characteristics. They were further confirmed by PCR using 16S rRNA specific primer pairs and by restriction enzyme analysis. In vitro antimicrobial susceptibility of the isolates indicated that some strains had developed resistance to the antibiotics tested. This is the first report on the isolation, identification, and molecular characterisation of Mycoplasma species isolated from goats in Chongqing. This study also revealed a prevalence of Mycoplasma species infection in goats in this area.