Antibiotic Susceptibility of Mycoplasma bovis Strains Recovered From Mycoplasmal Pneumonia and Arthritis in Feedlot Cattle

Mycoplasmal pneumonia and arthritis is a problem of increasing significance in Midwestern feedlots. The disease presentation cannot be prevented by vaccination or successfully treated with antimicrobials. Due to the reported difficulty in treating these outbreaks, in-vitro antimicrobial susceptibility was tested on isolates of Mycoplasma bovis recovered from cases of pneumonia or pneumonia and arthritis where the mycoplasma was involved as a causative agent. Using a broth microdilution method, 36 M. bovis isolates from cases of pneumonia and 9 from cases of pneumonia and arthritis were tested for susceptibility to antimicrobials currently used in cattle with respiratory disease (ampicillin, tilmycosin, spectinomycin, tylosin, lincomycin, tetracycline, ceftiofur, and erythromycin). Among the isolates from cases with pneumonia, resistance to more antimicrobials was shown in recent isolates than in isolates from earlier years. Tetracycline and lincomycin were the drugs of choice for these isolates, although 3 of 36 isolates were resistant to all drugs tested. Isolates from cases of pneumonia and arthritis were from recent accessions. A majority of these isolates (5/9) were resistant to all antimicrobials tested. Lincomycin, spectinomycin, and tetracycline were antibiotics usable with 4/9 of the isolates. Overall, the results indicate that antimicrobial therapy in cases of mycoplasmal feedlot pneumonia and arthritis may be unrewarding.

Soybean Aphid Efficacy Evaluation

Soybean (Glycine max), grown in Iowa and most of the north central region of the United States, has not required regular insecticide use. The soybean aphid, Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae), causes yield losses from direct plant feeding, and has been shown to transmit several plant viruses. In Iowa, soybean aphid can colonize soybean fields in June and has developed into outbreaks in July and August capable of reducing yields by nearly 40 percent.

Soybean Aphid Efficacy Evaluation

Soybean, Glycine max (L.), grown in Iowa and most of the north central region of the United States, has not required regular insecticide usage. The soybean aphid, Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae), causes yield losses from direct plant feeding, and has been shown to transmit several plant viruses. In Iowa, soybean aphid can colonize soybean fields in June and has developed into outbreaks in July and August capable of reducing yields by nearly 40 percent.