Streptobacillus Moniliformis Infection in Mice

SUMMARY A report is given of an epizootic in white laboratory mice caused by Streptobacillus moniliformis, with healthy albino rats as the probable source of infection. The natural infection could be reproduced by subcutaneous, intraperitoneal, intravenous and intranasal inoculations and by feeding, as well as by contact with rats. It is proved that the portal of entry of the bacilli in feeding is not the intestines, but the throat and mouth, with a subsequent generalization of the infection via the submaxillary and cervical lymph nodes and vessels. Excretion of the streptobacilli with urine or bile could not be demonstrated with certainty. The symptoms of the spontaneous or experimentally produced disease are described and discussed. The epidemiology and possible modes of transmission of the infection under natural conditions are discussed.