摘要:The colonisation of the skin and the development of exudative epidermitis differed between gnotobiotic piglets which were infected with Staphylococcus hyicus alone and those colonised by bacteria producing substances inhibiting the growth of S. hyicus in vitro and afterwards infected with S. hyicus. Exudative epidermitis occurred in all piglets inoculated with only S. hyicus, the severity of lesions correlating with the population of S. hyicus on the skin. Inhibitorproducing strains of S. epidermidis, S. warneri and Aerococcus viridans were unable to reduce S. hyicus colonisation sufficiently to prevent disease. Nevertheless, in piglets first colonised by an inhibitory S. epiderrnidis strain, together with non-inhibitory isolates of S. horninis and S. warneri resulted in markedly reduced colonisation by S. hyicus and much milder disease than in the piglets with pure infections of S. hyicus.Keywords: Staphylococcus hyicus; Staphylococci; Exudative epidermitis; gnotobiotic piglets; Bacterial interference; Inhibitor.