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Heifers introduced a new subtype into a herd with persistent Staphylococcus aureus intramammary infections

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 May 2025

Joaquin Cicotello ,
Nasrin Ramezanigardaloud ,
Camila Miotti ,
Ana Inés Molineri Open the ORCID record for Ana Inés Molineri [Opens in a new window] ,
Tom Grunert ,
Guillermo Suarez Archilla ,
Luis Fernando Calvinho  and
Cecilia M. Camussone
Joaquin Cicotello
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (INTA-CONICET), Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela, Rafaela, Argentina
Nasrin Ramezanigardaloud
Affiliation:
Department of Pathobiology, Institute of Microbiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
Camila Miotti
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (INTA-CONICET), Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela, Rafaela, Argentina
Ana Inés Molineri
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (INTA-CONICET), Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela, Rafaela, Argentina
Tom Grunert
Affiliation:
Department of Pathobiology, Institute of Microbiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
Guillermo Suarez Archilla
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (INTA-CONICET), Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela, Rafaela, Argentina
Luis Fernando Calvinho
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (INTA-CONICET), Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela, Rafaela, Argentina
Cecilia M. Camussone*
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (INTA-CONICET), Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela, Rafaela, Argentina
*
Corresponding author: Cecilia M. Camussone; Email: camussone.cecilia@inta.gob.ar
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Abstract

This study describes the spread of intramammary infections (IMI) during the first lactation of heifers that were naturally infected with Staphylococcus aureus before parturition and introduced into a herd with a high prevalence of this organism. The heifers were monitored during their first lactation to determine potential spread and persistence of IMI and to characterize the isolates that caused IMI. Milk samples were obtained from all the cows in the lactating herd at the beginning of the study and one year later. S. aureus isolated at both these sampling times were compared with those obtained from the heifers to analyse their clonal and phylogenetic relationships, employing pulse-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), multi-locus sequence typing and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Most S. aureus isolated from mammary secretions of heifers before parturition established chronic IMI during the first lactation. PFGE typing discriminated 3 clusters that were associated with origin of isolates, number of lactations and clonal complex. Differences both in the presence and expression of genes associated with virulence determinants among the major pulsotypes infecting lactating cows and those from heifers that developed persistent IMI were detected, which are indicative of distinct adaptive capacities to generate IMI.

Keywords

Heifersintramammary infectionsStaphylococcus aureus

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Dairy Research , Volume 91 , Issue 4 , November 2024 , pp. 420 - 426
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Hannah Dairy Research Foundation

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