牛源金黄色葡萄球菌凝固酶基因的分型

为了了解我国不同地区奶牛场金黄色葡萄球菌基因型的分布情况,采用凝固酶基因（Coa）扩增的分型方法,对在奶牛乳房炎奶样中所分离到的26株金黄色葡萄球菌进行了分型。结果显示,26株金黄色葡萄球菌共分为5个基因型,黑龙江省分离株以PCR 3型为主（10/16）。发现在同一牛群中的分离株可以存在相同的基因型,也可以存在不同的基因型;而不同牛群中的分离株也可属于同一基因型。这种结果提示,在某个或某些牛群中存在某一金黄色葡萄球菌的流行型,但也可能存在多个金黄色葡萄球菌的克隆。     

Secretion of alpha-hemolysin by bovine mammary isolates of Staphylococcus aureus.

A total of 262 strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from the mammary gland of dairy cows were examined for the production of alpha-hemolysin. Strains were cultured in a liquid medium of casein hydrolysate and yeast extract in an atmosphere of 7% (v/v) CO2 in air. The assay consisted of a dot immunoblotting technique employing bacterial culture supernatants and a mouse monoclonal antibody specific for alpha-hemolysin. Ninety-four percent (247) of 262 strains were positive for alpha-hemolysin by this method, when cultured in the laboratory. This figure is compared with those obtained in previous studies which typically based their results on the hemolytic patterns of isolates on blood agar plates.     

Molecular typing of enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus isolated from bovine mastitis in Korea

One hundred and sixty-six Staphylococcus aureus isolates from mastitic milk samples from different cows on 26 farms were investigated for staphylococcal enterotoxins(SEs) and toxic shock syndrome toxin-1(TSST-1) by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) and reverse passive latex agglutination assay(RPLA). SEs and the TSST-1 gene were detected in thirty-seven isolates based on a multiplex PCR; SEA was detected in 32 isolates, SEB in 3 isolates, SEC in 1 isolate, and SEA and the TSST-1 gene in 1 isolate. Of the 37 enterotoxigenic isolates, thirty-three isolates were enterotoxigenic according to RPLA, where 29 isolates produced SEA, 3 isolates produced SEB, and 1 isolate produced SEC. The enterotoxin-producing S. aureus isolates were further characterized by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis(PFGE). A macrorestriction analysis revealed 11 PFGE patterns. Among the 33 enterotoxigenic S. aureus isolates, 45.4% exhibited the same PFGE pattern I. Accordingly, although the enterotoxin-producing S. aureus isolates from bovine mastitis were genetically diverse, 1 common genotype prevailed on the farms, indicating that PFGE pattern I isolates may be the most disseminated in Korea.     

Molecular typing of Staphylococcus aureus of bovine origin by polymorphisms of the coagulase gene.

Mastitis caused by Staphylococcus aureus is a disease of major economic importance to the dairy industry. Transmission occurs during milking, with chronically-infected cows acting as the major reservoirs of infection. PCR-coagulase gene typing of 151 S. aureus isolates from seven farms generated only six PCR types, with 110 (73%) isolates assigned to PCR type 1 and 23 (15.2%) isolates assigned to type 2. PCR type 1 was the predominant type on five of the seven farms, including farms in geographically separated regions of Victoria, while type 2 predominated on two farms. With the exception of the 41 isolates from one farm, all isolates were resistant to penicillin, but susceptible to other antibiotics that are routinely used to manage mastitis in dairy cattle. Nine of 11 cows with chronic S. aureus infection showed evidence of persistence of a single PCR type for periods of up to 9 months. Two different PCR types of S. aureus were isolated from the other two cows over the same period.     

Genotypic characterization by polymerase chain reaction of Staphylococcus aureus isolates associated with bovine mastitis

Staphylococcus aureus is recognized worldwide as a pathogen causing many serious diseases in humans and animals, and is the most common aetiological agent of clinical and subclinical bovine mastitis. The importance of evaluating the combination of S. aureus virulence factors has been emphasized both in human and veterinary medicine, and knowledge about the genetic variability within different S. aureus populations would help in the design of efficient treatments. The aim of the present study was to determine the genetic profiles of S. aureus strains isolated from milk of cows suffering from clinical and subclinical mastitis in Belgium. The presence of about forty virulence-associated genes was investigated by specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification. A high number of genotypic subtypes were observed, demonstrating further the large variation in the presence of virulence genes in S. aureus isolates and the considerable diversity of strains populations that are able to cause mastitis in cows. In accordance with other studies, we showed that some genes are associated with mastitis-causing S. aureus isolates, whereas others are absent or rarely present. We also further highlighted the presence of conserved gene combinations, namely the enterotoxigenic egc-cluster and the bovine pathogenicity island SaPIbov. Importantly, the presence of isolates carrying genes coding for toxins involved in important human infections makes the milk of cows with mastitis a potential reservoir for these toxins, and therefore a potential danger in human health, which strengthens the importance to consider raw milk consumption and its processing very carefully.     

Secretory virulence factors produced by Staphylococcus aureus isolates obtained from mastitic bovine milk--effect on bovine polymorphonuclear neutrophils

The aim of the research was to test whether exogenic virulence factors secreted by Staphylococcus aureus isolates are involved in mechanisms that allow the bacteria to modulate and evade phagocytosis by bovine polymorphonuclear neutrophils. The research was based on the comparison of the effects of supernatants, prepared from cultures of 30 S. aureus isolates, on the functional properties of bovine neutrophils in vitro. S. aureus isolates were collected from milk samples from cows with clinical mastitis. Supernatants, which were used to treat leukocytes, were prepared from 18 h S. aureus cultures. Exogenic virulence factors secreted by S. aureus isolates significantly influenced the phagocytosis parameters evaluated. Depending on their leukotoxic or superantigenic properties, supernatants could affect the ingestion process, and also showed an influence on the digestion efficiency and phagocytosis carried out by bovine polymorphonuclear neutrophils in vitro.     

新疆部分地区奶牛乳房炎金黄色葡萄球菌荚膜多糖分型的研究

为调查新疆奶牛乳房炎金黄色葡萄球菌主要流行血清型,本研究采用玻板凝集和双重PCR方法对不同地区奶牛乳房炎乳样中分离的117株金黄色葡萄球菌进行血清分型.结果表明荚膜多糖5型占10.26％(12/117),8型占13.68％(16/117),336型占64.96％(76/117),未分型菌株占11.11 ％(13/117).该研究为新疆奶牛乳房炎金黄色葡萄球菌疫苗菌株的筛选提供了依据.     

Phage typing of Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated in Sweden from bovine milk.

Both the human and the bovine international sets of phages were used for typing of 372 bovine Staphylococcus aureus (Sa) strains, whereas the bovine set alone was used for typing of a further 1183 strains. In addition, 338 of the strains were tested for antibiotic sensitivity. Out of 372 Sa strains 85.5% could be typed with the human and 89.8% with the bovine phage set. Of all the 1555 Sa strains used 92.4% were lysed by the bovine phage set. Several phage types can be present in one and the same herd and some of them can predominate. Resistance to most of the tested antibiotics was very low. The incidence of resistance to penicillin and ampicillin was 10.0% and 4.4% respectively.     

Staphylococcus aureus from 152 cases of bovine,ovine and caprine mastitis investigated by Multiple-locus variable number of tandem repeat analysis (MLVA)

Staphylococcus aureus is one of the main etiological agents of mastitis in ruminants. In the present retrospective study, we evaluated the potential interest of a previously described automated multiple loci Variable Number of Tandem Repeats (VNTR) Assay (MLVA) comprising 16 loci as a first line tool to investigate the population structure of S. aureus from mastitis. We determined the genetic diversity of S. aureus strains from cases of clinical and subclinical mastitis in dairy cattle (n = 118, of which 16 were methicillin-resistant), sheep (n = 18) and goats (n = 16). The 152 strains could be subdivided into 115 MLVA genotypes (including 14 genotypes for the ovine strains and 15 genotypes for the caprine strains). This corresponds to a discriminatory index (D) value of 0.9936. Comparison with published MLVA data obtained using the same protocol applied to strains from diverse human and animal origins revealed a low number (8.5%) of human-related MLVA genotypes among the present collection. Eighteen percent of the S. aureus mastitis collection belonged to clonal complexes apparently not associated with other pathological conditions. Some of them displayed a relatively low level of diversity in agreement with a restricted ecological niche. These findings provide arguments suggesting that specific S. aureus lineages particularly adapted to ruminant mammary glands have emerged and that MLVA is a convenient tool to provide a broad overview of the population, owing to the availability via internet of databases compiling published MLVA genotypes.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13567-014-0097-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Prevalence of coagulase gene polymorphism in Staphylococcus aureus isolates causing bovine mastitis.

This study was conducted to investigate polymorphism of the coagulase gene of Staphylococcus aureus causing bovine mastitis. One hundred eighty-seven strains of S. aureus were isolated from bovine mastitic milk samples obtained from 187 different Danish dairy farms. The isolates were characterised for restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) of the coagulase gene. A variable region of the coagulase gene was amplified using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by AluI restriction enzyme digestion. A total of 15 different RFLP patterns were observed. The predominant pattern was found in 35% of the isolates. The ease of analysing coagulase gene polymorphisms among a large number of strains, and the multiple distinct polymorphic patterns generated, supports the use of this technique in epidemiological investigations of bovine mastitis. The predominating variants may have predelection for causing intramammary infections.     

Differences between Danish bovine and human Staphylococcus aureus isolates in possession of superantigens

PCR-assays for the detection of staphylococcal enterotoxins A-E, and H, toxic shock toxin 1, and exfoliative toxins A and B were evaluated against phenotypic methods, and performed well. Four hundred and fourteen isolates of Staphylococcus aureus from Danish cases of bovine mastitis were screened for genes encoding these superantigens. One hundred isolates from Danish human carriers were also included in the study. In contrast to the frequent presence of genes encoding and in vitro expression of superantigens among the human carrier isolates, only one of 414 isolates from bovine mastitis carried the genes encoding enterotoxin C and toxic shock toxin-1. These results further support the hypothesis that the bovine and human S. aureus reservoirs constitute two separate sub-populations of the species S. aureus. The results also show that these superantigens are generally not present in Danish S. aureus isolates from bovine mastitis, and thus play no essential role in the pathogenesis of bovine S. aureus mastitis.     

Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of bovine mastitis isolates of Staphylococcus aureus for biofilm formation

Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most common pathogens responsible for contagious mastitis in ruminants. The ability of S. aureus to form biofilm in vivo is considered to be a major virulence factor influencing its pathogenesis in mastitis. The objectives of the study were to examine in vitro slime production, biofilm formation, and the presence of the ica gene locus and icaA and icaD genes in S. aureus isolates from bovine mastitis. Thirty-two of the 35 isolates tested produced slime on Congo red agar, whereas only 24 of the isolates were found to produce biofilm in vitro. However, all the 35 isolates possessed the ica locus, icaA and icaD genes. This study indicates a high prevalence of the ica genes among S. aureus mastitis isolates, and their presence is not always associated with in vitro formation of slime or biofilm. A combination of phenotypic and genotypic tests is recommended for investigating biofilm formation in S. aureus.     

牛源金黄色葡萄球菌16SrRNA分子鉴定与随机多态性扩增分型

利用16S rRNA保守序列对引起内蒙古地区奶牛乳房炎的金黄色葡萄球菌进行分离鉴定,并且建立引物随机多态性扩增(RAPD)体系对金黄色葡萄球菌分离株进行基因分型研究.结果表明,共分离出金黄色葡萄球菌35株,RAPD结果显示这35株菌均可得到清晰的RAPD指纹图谱,扩增产物在1～8条带之间,产物大小在350～4 500bp之间.菌株分为6个基因型,Ⅳ型为该地区的流行优势菌群.不同牛场各基因型菌株分布有明显差异,这与牛场的环境和病原菌在牛场间流行传播情况有关.研究结果为地区性奶牛乳房炎的防治及新疫苗的研制提供了可靠的理论依据.     

Molecular subtyping of Staphylococcus aureus isolates from cases of bovine mastitis in Brazil.

Sixty-six isolates of Staphylococcus aureus obtained from milk samples of dairy cows suffering from subclinical mastitis in southern Brazil were analysed by five different molecular typing methods. These included the analysis of plasmid profiles, the analysis of coagulase (coa) gene polymorphisms by PCR amplification of the 3' terminal region of the coa gene, the PCR-based detection of polymorphisms in the X region of the protein A gene (spa), the PCR-directed analysis of variations in the spacer region between 16S and 23S rRNA, and the comparison of pulsed-field gel electrophoretically separated genomic SmaI fragment patterns. The molecular typing methods were supplemented with the biochemical characterization of the isolates and the determination of their in-vitro susceptibility to 14 different antibiotics. All genotypic and phenotypic typing methods were analyzed for their ability to discriminate between the isolates. Macrorestriction analysis proved to be the most discriminatory single method (D = 0.96) followed by rRNA spacer typing (D = 0.85), coa PCR (D = 0.82), and spa PCR (D = 0.80).     

Evaluation of levamisole for use in control of bovine Staphylococcus aureus mastitis

Levamisole was injected into cows six times at weekly intervals in the dry period and its effect on existing subclinical Staphylococcus aureus mastitis monitored through the following milking season. Levamisole therapy failed to eliminate or modify subclinical S. aureus mastitis. In a second experiment, a single levamisole administration at drying off did not prevent new experimentally-induced S. aureus infections in the first two weeks of the dry period and there were similar numbers of cases of clinical and subclinical mastitis in treated and control groups. However, levamisole may have reduced the severe clinical manifestations of the bacterial challenge, since gangrenous mastitis and abortion were only observed in the control cows.     

Dissimilarity of ccrAB gene sequences between methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus among bovine isolates in Korea

The sequences of the ccrAB genes from bovine-, canine- and chicken-originating methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus (S.) epidermidis (MRSE) and bovine methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus (S.) aureus (MRSA) were compared to investigate the frequency of intra-species horizontal transfer of the staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) complex. Nineteen MRSE strains were isolated from bovine milk, chickens, and dogs, and their genetic characteristics were investigated by multilocus sequence typing and SCCmec typing. Among the animal MRSE strains, the most frequent SCCmec type was type IV, which consisted of the type B mec complex and ccrAB type 2. The ccrA2 and ccrB2 genes were sequenced from the bovine, chicken and canine MRSE strains and compared with those of the bovine MRSA strains. The sequences generally clustered as MRSA and MRSE groups, regardless of the animal source. Additionally, no bovine MRSE sequence was associated with the bovine MRSA groups. Although most of the bovine MRSE and MRSA isolates possessed SCCmec type IV sequences, our results suggest that the intra-species gene transfer of the SCCmec complex between bovine S. aureus and bovine S. epidermidis strains is not a frequent event.     

Time course of biofilm formation by Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis mastitis isolates

Biofilm formation is considered a selective advantage for staphylococci mastitis isolates, facilitating bacterial persistence in the udder. It requires attachment to mammary epithelium, proliferation and accumulation of cells in multilayers and enclosing in a polymeric matrix, being regulated by several loci. As biofilm formation can proceed through different pathways and time ranges, its detection may differ according to the time of observation. This study aimed at evaluating the time course evolution of biofilm production in Staphylococcus aureus (n = 26) and Staphylococcus epidermidis (n = 29) mastitis isolates by Fluorescent In Situ Hybridisation. Biofilm-forming ability increased with incubation time for both species: for S. aureus, 34.6%, 69.2% and 80.8% of the isolates were able to produce biofilm at 24, 48 and 72 h, respectively. For S. epidermidis, 44.8%, 62.1% and 75.9% of the isolates were biofilm-positive at 24, 48 and 72 h, respectively. No significant difference was found between species at each time point (Friedman's test, p > 0.05). For S. aureus, although a significant difference was found between 24 and 48 h (Wilcoxon matched paired test, p < 0.05), no significant difference was found between 24 and 48 h (p > 0.05). For S. epidermidis, significant differences were found between each time point (p < 0.05). Bacterial biofilms may impair eradication of chronic mastitis, rendering antibiotherapy less effective. Detection of biofilm-forming ability in mastitis isolates may provide useful information for the establishment of a more adequate therapeutic regimen, in view of the antimicrobial concentrations required for bacterial control. However, it is essential that biofilm formation time course is taken into consideration.     

Antibacterial activity of thionin Thi2.1 from Arabidopsis thaliana expressed by bovine endothelial cells against Staphylococcus aureus isolates from bovine mastitis

Bovine mastitis is mainly caused by Staphylococcus aureus and antimicrobial therapy, commonly used for its control, has resulted in an increase in the frequency of resistant staphylococci in recent years. Thus, alternative therapies are desirable and the antimicrobial peptides represent attractive control agents. In this work, we expressed the antimicrobial peptide thionin Thi2.1 cDNA from Arabidopsis thaliana in the bovine endothelial cell line BVE-E6E7 and evaluated its activity against bovine mastitis S. aureus isolates. A polyclonal population from BVE-E6E7 cells transfected with the pThi2.1 construct was obtained and thionin Thi2.1 expression was confirmed by RT-PCR. From this population, eight stably transfected cell clones were obtained and their conditioned media (CM) were evaluated against the S. aureus ATCC 27543 strain. Clones showed high antibacterial activity (>95%) relative to the activity of the polyclonal population. The C8 clone showed the highest antibacterial activity (>99%) and its CM was evaluated against eleven bovine mastitis S. aureus isolates. A 2.5microg aliquot of total protein from the C8 clone's CM inhibited the growth of S. aureus isolates (>40%) relative to the CM from BVE-E6E7 cells used as control. Growth inhibition of S. aureus isolates was dose-dependent, showing a total inhibition at concentrations higher than 3.12microg/ml. These results suggest that thionin Thi2.1 antimicrobial peptide could be use in the treatment of bovine mastitis.