Clinical and immunological effects of experimental infection with Klebsiella pneumoniae in lambs in Iraq

Abstract

The study was conducted on ten Awassi male sheep to study experimentally pathological changes of Klebsiella pneumoniae infection during (3 months). Experimental animals were divided randomly into equal groups(each group included 5 animals), induction of pneumonia in one of these group in sheep by intratracheal route with the infective dose (3 ml) of bacterial suspension in concentration (10 CFU/ml) & the second represent as control and gave a sterile D.W. in the same dose & route of infection) and clinically exam daily with weekly complete blood indices, humoral and cellular immunity were examined by passive heamagglutination test and phagocytic activity as well as histopathological examination of lungs from two scarified sheep in the first group. Nasal discharge appeared as serous then turned to mucopurulent, intermittent cough, mild fever, increase in pulse and respiratory rates (42.4±1.39 and 35.2±1.77 respectively with significant differences between the two groups. WBC count increased significantly in the infected group as compared with the control group. GRN% showed statistically a significant increase in the values reached to (8.88±0.86) during that period of infection compared with control and Mon% showed a statistically significant increase in values during that period in the infected group, and the Abs titration was the higher in the infected group significantly than control and the cellular response in the infected group revealed increment in phagocytic index of neutrophils than in the control group.