Genetic analysis of Streptococcus suis isolates recovered from diseased and healthy carrier pigs at different stages of production on a pig farm.

Streptococcus suis isolates from pigs at different stages of production on a farrow-to-finish farm were characterised by serotyping, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and production of muramidase-released protein, extracellular factor and suilysin. S. suis was isolated from the tonsils of 81/287 (28.2%) healthy pigs: 16/47 (34%) post-weaning, 18/47 (38.3%) transition, 18/47 (38.3%) fattening and 29/146 (19.9%) sows. A total of 127 S. suis isolates were analysed: 14 from diseased pigs at the post-weaning stage and 113 from the tonsils of healthy pigs. Serotypes 2, 4, 9, 14 and 1/14 were isolated from both diseased and healthy pigs. A total of 83 PFGE profiles were obtained; most isolates (95.2%) were grouped into three clusters (A-C). Animals at different production stages harboured isolates with similar phenotypic and genetic profiles, highlighting the importance of healthy animals in the maintenance of strains responsible for outbreaks of clinical disease.