Detection of Clostridium perfringens Alpha, Epsilon and Clostridium chauvoei A toxin genes in Blackleg

Abstract

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) detected concurrent infection of Clostridium (C.) perfringens type D and C. chauvoei in samples of three cattle out of five which were submitted to Veterinary Research Institute (VRI) for confirmation of C. chauvoei. The animals had a history of fever, lameness and crepitating sound with death occurring within 48 hours after the onset of clinical signs and seemed to be typical cases of black leg. Furthermore, the traditional methods including clinical examination, necropsy findings, cultural and biological methods are not solely enough for the confirmation of disease and are not sufficient to determine the number of pathogens involved in such cases.