Synergistic hemolytic reactions between staphylococci and Micrococcus lylae.

The primary culture of a clinical specimen obtained from a dog with an acute squamous eczema revealed three different bacterial species which demonstrated synergistic hemolytic activities on sheep blood agar plates. The three cultures were identified as beta-hemolytic Staphylococcus intermedius, as a coagulase-negative staphylococcal species, producing a delta-like hemolysin and as non-hemolytic Micrococcus lylae. The coagulase-negative staphylococcal species as well as M. lylae produced synergistically with beta-hemolytic S. intermedius zones of complete hemolysis. The occurrence of three different synergistically active bacterial species from one clinical specimen might be of clinical significance.