Study ofStaphylococcus aureuscollected at slaughter from dairy cows with chronic mastitis
Staphylococcus aureusis one of the most important pathogens associated with bovine mastitis. Recent studies have shown thatStaph. aureusstrains may differ in virulence, and in their ability to disseminate across commercial dairy herds. The goal of this study was to determine whetherStaph. aureusisolates differed in their ability to colonize mammary tissue, and whether such differences could be related to molecular characteristics. Quarter milk and mammary tissues of 22 cows from two dairy herds, were collected at slaughter and bacteriological analysis was performed. AllStaph. aureusisolates were characterized by Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) and microarray. Overall 45 mammary quarters were infected and 20Staph. aureusisolates were identified. The bacteria were mostly recovered from both milk and tissue of the same quarter in significantly higher numbers from herd A cows compared with herd B. Molecular characterization of the isolates showed distinct PFGE profiles for isolates from each herd. Differences in virulence factors between herds A and B isolates were evidenced The genes for enterotoxin D, J and R were present in herd A, those for G, I, N, M, O and U were shown in herd B, whilst both components of the leukocidinlukD/Egenes were only carried by herd A isolates. Furthermore, all herd A isolates showed β-haemolysin activity, which was absent in all but one isolate from herd B. Therefore our data indicate thatStaph. aureusisolates showing differences in their ability to disseminate and colonize across quarters, also have significantly different virulence characteristics.