Mt. Butt et al., A CYTOTOXICITY ASSAY FOR CLOSTRIDIUM SPIROFORME ENTEROTOXIN IN CECAL FLUID OF RABBITS, Laboratory animal science, 44(1), 1994, pp. 52-54
Clostridium spiroforme enterotoxin-mediated diarrhea can be a common c
ause of mortality among weanling age rabbits. Definitive diagnosis of
this disorder requires detection of the causative enterotoxin. Using f
iltered cecal supernatant from necropsy specimens, antibodies to C. sp
iroforme and its products and Vero cells, a cytotoxicity assay was per
formed on 22 rabbits with clinical signs and lesions consistent with C
. spiroforme enterotoxin-mediated diarrhea. A cytotoxic effect was det
ected, generally within 4 h, in 18 of 22 rabbits. The cytotoxic effect
was blocked by preincubation of the cecal material with antibodies to
C. spiroforme and its products. Culture of cecal contents and smears
of cecal contents identified C. spiroforme in 10/22 and 12/22 cases, r
espectively. This cytotoxicity assay provided a rapid and sensitive me
thod for diagnosing C. spiroforme enterotoxin-mediated diarrhea.