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. 1998 Jun 1;39(2):173–182. doi: 10.1186/BF03547790

Aerobic Bacterial Flora of Semen and Stallion Reproductive Tract and its Relation to Fertility Under Field Conditions

Aerob bakterieflora i sperma och könsvägar hos hingst, och dess relation till fertilitet

L Malmgren 13,✉, E Olsson Engvall 23, A Engvall 33, A Albihn 33
PMCID: PMC8050676  PMID: 9787481

Abstract

This study was initiated in order to investigate the bacterial flora of the stallion genital tract by taking consecutive samples from normal stallions in regular use. The objective was to determine whether any growth of potential pathogens, particularly P. aeruginosa and K. pneumoniae, in fresh semen and urethra was associated with the presence of inflammatory cells in the semen and whether bacterial growth had any effect on sperm morphology and pregnancy results. Sixteen stallions, only used for A.I., housed at 3 different commercial stud farms, were used. A wide variety of microorganisms was found in almost all samples from fresh semen (total 115 samples). P. aeruginosa was isolated from 46/115 (40%) of the samples and from 12 of the 16 stallions. K. pneumoniae was isolated from the semen of one stallion. Samples taken from the distal urethra after ejaculation contained fewer microorganisms than samples from fresh semen. No bacteria were found in 51% of the extended semen samples.

Most of the stallions had an acceptable sperm morphology, and very few of the ejaculates contained inflammatory cells. Pregnancy results among the stallions varied, but were acceptable for most of them. There was no correlation between the frequency of samples testing positive for P. aeruginosa in raw semen and pregnancy results. kw|Keywords|k]bacterial growth k]urethra k]Pseudomonas aeruginosa k]Klebsiella pneumoniae

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Acknowledgments

The authors are indebted to our colleagues Stig Einarsson, Lars Garmer, Johan Hellander, and Marie Edshammar for participating in the planning of the study and for being responsible for collecting the samples. We also wish to thank the veterinary students Helena Wejsfelt and Elisabeth Jacobsson for compiling the results and Dr. T.L. Pitt, Central Public Health Laboratory, London for serotyping the K. pneumoniae isolate. This work was financially supported by the Swedish Board of Agriculture and the Swedish Horserace Totalisator Board.

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