| Summary: | <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> has been associated with respiratory, genitourinary tract infections and rheumatoid diseases but its role as pathogen is controversial. The purpose of this study was to probe that <it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> is able to produce respiratory tract infection and migrate to several organs on an experimental infection model in hamsters. One hundred and twenty six hamsters were divided in six groups (A-F) of 21 hamsters each. Animals of groups A, B, C were intratracheally injected with one of the mycoplasma strains: <it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> P 140 (wild strain), <it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> PG 18 (type strain) or <it>Mycoplasma pneumoniae</it> Eaton strain. Groups D, E, F were the negative, media, and sham controls. Fragments of trachea, lungs, kidney, heart, brain and spleen were cultured and used for the histopathological study. U frequency test was used to compare recovery of mycoplasmas from organs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Mycoplasmas were detected by culture and PCR. The three mycoplasma strains induced an interstitial pneumonia; they also migrated to several organs and persisted there for at least 50 days. <it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> P 140 induced a more severe damage in lungs than <it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> PG 18. <it>Mycoplasma pneumoniae</it> produced severe damage in lungs and renal damage.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p><it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> induced a respiratory tract infection and persisted in different organs for several weeks in hamsters. This finding may help to explain the ability of <it>Mycoplasma fermentans</it> to induce pneumonia and chronic infectious diseases in humans.</p>
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