Sheep flock infections with Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae involve multiple strains

Infections with Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae have been characterized as occurring with multiple strains within a flock of sheep. In this study clonal isolates of M. ovipneumoniae recovered from 35 lambs from five flocks in central Iowa were analyzed. Using a single primer arbitrarily primed polymerase chain reaction (AP-PCR), and amplified-fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) techniques, a genomic fingerprint was created for each M. ovipneumoniae clonal isolate recovered. The amplified products were separated using gel electrophoresis for the AP-PCR and a sequencer for the AFLP. Band patterns were then analyzed to create dendrograms. In each flock more strains of M. ovipneumoniae were detected when using AP-PCR compared to AFLP. Genomic fingerprints created from the AP-PCR technique yielded fewer bands than those from AFLP. Overall, it was confirmed that multiple strains of M. ovipneumoniae are involved in each flock infection.