Effect of Storage Time and Temperature on Recovery of \u3ci\u3eSynergistes jonesii\u3c/i\u3e from Rumen Fluid and Feces

Synergistes jonesii is a rumen bacterium that degrades 3,4-dihydroxypyridine (3,4 DHP), the toxic breakdown product of mimosine in leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala). Fecal culture is the most practical way to determine S. jonesii presence in zoological ruminants, particularly if feces can be collected from night penning facilities. Fresh rumen fluid and fecal or fecal slurry (sheep [Ovis spp.] only, 1:4 wt to vol. feces and culture media) from cattle (Bos spp.) and sheep, known to be colonized by S. jonesii, were subjected various storage times (0, 6, 12, and 24 h) and temperatures (5, 23, and 38 oC). Samples were inoculated into a culture medium that contained 3,4 DHP. In general, storage temperature had no affect on detection frequency. Regardless of animal species, detection of S. jonesii was higher (P=0.001) in rumen (97%) than in fecal (40%) samples and level of detection in rumen samples was relatively unaffected by storage time. Detection frequency was similar for both fecal sample types regardless of time (34% fecal vs. 29% fecal slurry). For all fecal samples, detection frequency generally exhibited a linear decline (P=0.01) with time. This study showed that it will be important to collect fresh fecal samples (\u3c 6-h old) from night penning facilities, and because detection levels were low in fecal material, fecal assay would be most accurate on a whole herd rather than an individual animal basis