The prevalence of mastitis, milk quality and health risks associated with milk consumption were investigated on 96 randomly selected traditional herds in Dodoma rural and Mvomero districts of Tanzania. Mastitis was investigated based on clinical signs, microbiology and California mastitis test (CMT), while milk quality was evaluated using total viable count (TVC)and total coliform count (TCC). Animals were tested for tuberculosis using a single comparative intradermal tuberculin test. The prevalence of subclinical mastitis based on CMT was low (8.3%). The major isolates were Staphylococcus aureus (35.3%), other staphylococci (20.8%), coliforms (27.7%), microcci (5.8%) and streptococci (9.8%). The average TVC of milk in Dodoma rural district (1.0 x10(7)+/-3.4 x10(7))was significantly higher than that in Mvomero district (8.9x10(5) 3.5x10(6)) (p<0.001)and the proportion of TCC-positive samples in Dodoma (70.7%)were significantly higher (p<0.001) than that of Mvomero sample(20.8%). Whereas no tuberculin reactor animal was detected in the study animals, atypical mycobacteria were isolated from milk and one sample from Dodoma had Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Knowledge on health risks associated with milk consumption was low (20.8%). It is concluded that lack of awareness on health risks associated with milk consumption amongst rural communities needs to be addressed in order to safeguard their health.
Animals ; Cattle ; Female ; Humans ; Mastitis, Bovine/*epidemiology ; Milk/*microbiology/*standards ; Prevalence ; Public Health ; Tanzania/epidemiology ; Tuberculosis, Bovine/*epidemiology

Bovine mastitis (BM) has resulted in enormous economic loss in the dairy industry and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) have caused subclinical BM. Although VITEK 2 GP ID card (VITEK 2) has been used for CNS identification, the probability of identification varies. The rpoB sequence typing (RSTing) method has been used for molecular diagnosis and epidemiology of bacterial infections. In this study, we undertook RSTing of CNS and compared the results with those of VITEK2 and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. As compared VITEK2, the molecular-based methods were more reliable for species identification; moreover, RSTing provided more molecular epidemiological information than that from 16S rRNA gene sequencing.
Animals ; Bacterial Infections ; Cattle ; Diagnosis ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Genes, rRNA ; Mastitis, Bovine ; Methods

Oregano (Origanum vulgare) is an aromatic herb belonging to the Lamiaceae family. This study evaluated the therapeutic effect of oregano essential oil (OEO) on clinical bovine mastitis caused by Staphylococcus (S.) aureus and/or Escherichia (E.) coli. Thirty-two quarters from 18 lactating cows with subclinical mastitis were selected from a dairy farm and were divided into 4 groups (8 quarters/group): negative control (CON), positive control (GEN) and two OEO-treated groups (OEO-1 and OEO-2). Each group was intramammarily treated with saline, 10 g/tube of gentamicin ointment, and single and double doses of 0.9 mL OEO ointment twice a day for three days, respectively. After the treatments, physical udder conditions were greatly improved in GEN and OEO groups. In CON group, somatic cell counts (SCCs), number of white blood cells (WBC) and bacteria were increased. However, in OEO groups, SCCs and number of WBC were significantly decreased and S. aureus and E. coli were not detected in milk as compared with those before the treatments as well as GEN group. These results suggest that OEO may be a useful alternative to antibiotics for the control of subclinical bovine mastitis caused by S. aureus and/or E. coli.
Animals ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Bacteria ; Cattle ; Cell Count ; Escherichia coli* ; Escherichia* ; Female ; Gentamicins ; Humans ; Lamiaceae ; Leukocytes ; Mammary Glands, Animal ; Mastitis ; Mastitis, Bovine* ; Milk ; Origanum* ; Staphylococcus aureus* ; Staphylococcus*

BACKGROUND: Candida species are normal flora in human and animals. Also they may cause diseases as pathogen. Bovine mastitis, cutaneous candidiasis in swine, and chicken dermatitis caused by Candida species were reported. Therefore, plant farmers which frequently contact with these animals may be at risk of candidal infection. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to investigate the possibility of candidal infection from swine to human in candidal paronychia. METHODS: We performed a mycological study in 36 swine plant farmers in Chung-Cheong area between March 1998 and February 2000. To define the species of Candida, culture on Sabouraud's dextrose agar(SDA) with and without chloramphenicol, germ tube test, and API 20C AUX yeast identification system were performed. For identification of strains, pulsed field gel electrophoresis(PFGE) was performed. RESULTS: Among 36 swine plant farmers, we found 15 patients with candidal paronychia and all 15 patients were midwives for swine. The species of Candida isolated from paronychial lesion of the patients and swine which the patients bred were Candida(C.) tropicalis, C. albicans, and C. krusei. When the same species between the patients and their swine were isolated, PFGE was performed for strain identification. The results of PFGE showed that the strains isolated from between the patients and their swine were identical in 6 of 7 cases. CONCLUSION: The results of genotyping analysis suggest that the Candida in swine cause paronychial lesion in human.
Animals ; Candida ; Candidiasis, Cutaneous ; Cattle ; Chickens ; Chloramphenicol ; Dermatitis ; Female ; Glucose ; Humans ; Mastitis, Bovine ; Midwifery ; Paronychia* ; Plants* ; Swine* ; Yeasts

Bovine mastitis is an important microbial disease in the dairy industry. We investigated the frequencies of bacterial pathogens in 62 farms and pathogen antibiotic resistance from mastitis samples (n = 748). We tested the antimicrobial activity of chicken and duck egg white and lysozyme purified from chicken egg white. Moreover, we compared the microbiomes of normal and mastitic raw milk obtained by 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing and culture methods. The results showed that the frequencies of Gram-positive pathogens (Enterococcus faecalis 37% and Staphylococcus aureus 36%) were higher than that of a Gram-negative pathogen (Escherichia coli 15%). Resistance frequencies to ampicillin and norfloxacin were lowest in Staphylococcus aureus (21%), Enterococcus faecalis (23%), and Escherichia coli (33%), and the antimicrobial activity of chicken egg white was higher than those of lysozyme and duck egg white. Pyrosequencing results revealed clear differences between the microbiomes of mastitic and normal raw milk samples and revealed a slightly similar, but clearly different, composition of pathogens compared to that from the culture method. Thus, pyrosequencing may be useful for elucidating changes in microbiomes during mastitis progression and treatment. A chicken egg white and antibiotic combination may help with mastitis treatment; however, further studies are needed.
Agriculture ; Ampicillin ; Animals ; Cattle ; Chickens ; Drug Resistance, Microbial ; Ducks ; Egg White* ; Enterococcus faecalis ; Escherichia coli ; Female ; Genes, rRNA* ; Mastitis ; Mastitis, Bovine* ; Methods ; Microbiota* ; Milk ; Muramidase ; Norfloxacin ; Ovum* ; Staphylococcus aureus

The expression profiles of inflammatory cytokines viz. interleukins (IL)-6, IL-8, IL-12, granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor, interferon-gamma and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in response to subclinical mastitis in indigenous cattle breed Kankrej (n = 6), Gir (Bos indicus) (n = 12) and crossbred (Bos taurus x Bos indicus) (n = 7) were investigated using quantitative real time PCR. Significant correlation (p < 0.05) was observed between total bacterial load and somatic cell count (SCC) in all three breeds of cattle. All the cytokines were observed to be up-regulated compared to cows with healthy quarters, however, level of their expression varied among three breeds of cattle. In Kankrej most cytokines were found to be transcribed to higher levels than in other two breeds; the milk had higher load of bacteria but not so high SCC, implying that Kankrej has a higher inherent resistance against mastitis. The results of present study indicated that mammary glands of crossbred cattle are more sensitive to bacterial infection than indigenous breed of cattle as they elicit immune response at lower bacterial load and result into higher SCC. Research on identification of factors responsible for differentially expressed cytokines profiles and use of cytokines as immunomodulatory tools can pave way for formulating control strategies against bovine mastitis.
Animals ; Bacteria ; Bacterial Infections ; Bacterial Load ; Cattle ; Cell Count ; Cytokines ; Female ; Granulocytes ; Interferon-gamma ; Interferons ; Interleukin-12 ; Interleukin-8 ; Interleukins ; Mammary Glands, Human ; Mastitis ; Mastitis, Bovine ; Milk ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

Our recent study has provided that the in vitro SEC-induced proliferation of bovine T cells is preceded by a period of a non-proliferative immunoregulation of T cells that may be associated with cytokine production regulated by type 1 or type 2 T cells. Inversion of CD4+:CD8+ T cell ratio and induction of CD8+T cells with immunoregulatory activity could increase the probability of intracellular survival of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). The increase of activated CD8+(ACT2+ BoCD8+) T cells in cows with mastitis caused by S. aureus may be associated with immune-regulatory function in the bovine mammary gland. The difference and similarity between bovine activated CD8+ T cells (CD8+ CD26+)and well-established human CD4+ CD25+ T regulatory (Tr)cells may help to reveal their unique immune regulatory system in the host infected with S. aureus.
Animals ; Cattle ; Cell Proliferation ; Female ; Lymphocyte Activation/immunology ; Mastitis, Bovine/*immunology/microbiology ; Staphylococcal Infections/immunology/*veterinary ; Staphylococcus/*immunology ; *Superantigens ; T-Lymphocytes/*immunology

To develop a gene therapy strategy for treating bovine mastitis, a new mammary-specific vector containing human lysozyme (hLYZ) cDNA and kanamycin resistance gene was constructed for intramammary expression and clinical studies. After one time acupuncture or intracisternal infusion of healthy cows with 400 microg of the p215C3LYZ vector, over 2.0 microg/ml of rhLYZ could be detected by enzymatic assay for about 3 weeks in the milk samples. Western blotting showed that rhLYZ secreted into milk samples from the vector-injected cows had molecular weight similar to that of the natural hLYZ in human colostrums. Twenty days after the primary injection, the quarters were re-injected with the same vector by quarter acupuncture and even higher concentrations of rhLYZ could be detected. Indirect competitive ELISA of milk samples showed that the vector injection did not induce detectable humoral immune response against hLYZ. Clinical studies showed that twice acupuncture of quarters with the p215C3LYZ vector had overt therapeutic effect on clinical and subclinical mastitis previously treated with antibiotics, including disappearance of clinical symptoms and relatively high microbiological cure rates. These data provide a solid rationale for using the vector to develop gene therapy for treating bovine mastitis.
Acupuncture ; Animals ; Cattle ; Female ; Genetic Therapy ; methods ; veterinary ; Genetic Vectors ; genetics ; Mastitis, Bovine ; genetics ; therapy ; Milk ; chemistry ; Muramidase ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; metabolism

In this study, we investigated the impact of mastitisinfection on the quality of milk composition in small-scaledairy bovine herds. The purpose of this study was to finda milk quality somatic cell count (SCC) standard thatcould be used as an integral component of a controlprogram. In all, 396 quarter milk samples from lactatingcross-bred cows (Holstein & Zebu) were analyzed; 56% ofthese quarters were experiencing intramammary infection,with an overall mean SCC of 5.46x10(5)+/-2.30x10(4)cells/ml. Infected quarters had significantly (p<0.05) highermean SCC levels (6.19x10(5)+/-4.40x10(4)cells/ml) comparedto healthy quarters (2.65x10(5)+/- 2.40x10(4)cells/ml). Inhigh SCC milk and infected quarters, the concentrationsof non-casein fractions, sodium, chloride, and free fattyacid were higher (p<0.05), while the casein content,lactose, casein-to-total protein, potassium, and calciumwere lower (p<0.05) compared to normal quarters. Thesefindings suggest a mean SCC threshold limit of 5.46x10(5)cells/ml for the region. It was concluded that the resultscould be used to propose a milk quality SCC standard thatcan be used as an integral component of a control program.
Animals ; Cattle ; Cell Count ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Dairying ; Female ; Mastitis, Bovine/*metabolism/microbiology ; Milk/chemistry/*metabolism/microbiology ; Rural Population ; Statistics, Nonparametric

Staphylococcus aureus is one of the major pathogens causing bovine mastitis and foodborne diseases associated with dairy products. To determine the genetic relationships between human and bovine or bovine isolates of S. aureus, various molecular methods have been used. Previously we developed an rpoB sequence typing (RSTing) method for molecular differentiation of S. aureus isolates and identification of RpoB-related antibiotic resistance. In this study, we performed spa typing and RSTing with 84 isolates from mastitic cows (22 farms, 72 cows, and 84 udders) and developed a molecular prophage typing (mPPTing) method for molecular epidemiological analysis of bovine mastitis. To compare the results, human isolates from patients (n = 14) and GenBank (n = 166) were used for real and in silico RSTing and mPPTing, respectively. Based on the results, RST10-2 and RST4-1 were the most common rpoB sequence types (RSTs) in cows and humans, respectively, and most isolates from cows and humans clearly differed. Antibiotic resistance-related RSTs were not detected in the cow isolates. A single dominant prophage type and gradual evolution through prophage acquisition were apparent in most of the tested farms. Thus, RSTing and mPPTing are informative, simple, and economic methods for molecular epidemiological analysis of S. aureus infections.
Agriculture ; Animals ; Cattle ; Computer Simulation ; Dairy Products ; Databases, Nucleic Acid ; Drug Resistance, Microbial ; Female ; Foodborne Diseases ; Humans ; Mastitis, Bovine ; Methods ; Molecular Epidemiology ; Prophages ; Staphylococcus aureus ; Staphylococcus