초록
Clostridium novyi (C. novyi) is a gram positive, non-capsulated, motile, obligatory anaerobe that produces endospores. Both C. novyi type A and B produce a bacteriophage encoded lethal alpha toxin which belongs to a family of large clostridial cytotoxins. These large clostridial cytotoxins of C. novyi bind to the uncharacterized receptors on host vascular endothelial cells, which leads to the loss of integrity of the vascular endothelium with subsequent edema, refractory hypotension, organ failure, and sudden death. A total of 13 sudden death cases were submitted to Chonbuk National University-Veterinary Diagnostic Center between June and October, 2015. The samples, mainly liver, were collected in sterile vials after necropsy and processed within 12~24 hours for diagnosis, isolation and identification of C. novyi. All of the 4 gram positive samples showed amplification by PCR. Out of 4 positive samples, 3 were detected to be C. novyi type B and 1 was detected as C. novyi type A. Based on the 16S rDNA sequence analysis, 1 case (150564) showed 99% similarity with C. novyi type A while other 3 cases (150388, 150557 and 150775) presented 99% similarity with C. novyi type B. Based on the results, C. novyi was found to be prevalent in Korean pig farms and causes sudden death to finishing pigs or sows during summer season. Thus, C. novyi should be considered for differential diagnosis on sudden death cases during the summer season.
