Application of the Suckling Mouse Bioassay to Assess the Enterotoxic Properties of Yersinia Enterocolitica Strains Isolated from Fattening Pigs

Enterotoxic capacities of 95 Yersinia enterocolitica strains isolated from fattening pigs by the use of the suckling mouse bioassay were investigated. A positive result was received for 14 strains (14.74%), doubtful for 33 strains (34.74%), while the rest of 48 strains (50.52%) did not induce the production of enterotoxins. The received results show that in the pig population there are almost 15% of Yersinia enterocolitica strains, which are directly dangerous to public health because of their enterotoxic capacity. It is also worth paying attention to those strains, which in the suckling mouse bioassay provided doubtful results (around 35%) because their ability to produce enterotoxins was not explicitly declared as impossible.