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Equine colitis X associated with infection by Clostridium difficile NAP1/027

Correspondence: ¹Corresponding Author: J. Glenn Songer, Department of Veterinary Science and Microbiology, 1117 East Lowell Street, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721. gsonger{at}u.arizona.edu

A 14-year-old Quarter Horse with a 48-hr history of colic was euthanized after failure to respond to treatment. At necropsy, cecal and colonic mucosae were congested throughout, and there was segmental edema and significant thickening of the intestinal wall. Excessive numbers of mononuclear cells were found in mucosal lamina propria. Submucosal hemorrhage was diffuse and extensive, and Clostridium difficile toxins A and B were detected. Large numbers of C. difficile were isolated, and genetic characterization revealed them to be North American pulsed-field gel electrophoresis type 1, polymerase chain reaction ribotype 027, and toxinotype III. Genes for the binary toxin were present, and toxin negative–regulator tcdC contained an 18-bp deletion. This genotype comprises the current human "epidemic strain," which is associated with human C. difficile–associated disease of greater than historical severity. The diagnosis was peracute typhlocolitis, with lesions and history typical of those attributed to colitis X.

Key Words: Clostridium difficile • colitis X • equine hemorrhagic enteritis