Evaluation of point-of-care tests for identification of pathogens to inform clinical mastitis treatment decisions in pasture- and confinement-managed dairy cows in Australia.

To support antimicrobial stewardship in livestock production, there is a growing array of point-of-care diagnostics to guide antimicrobial treatment. The primary objective of this observational study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of 5 point-of-care tests currently available in Australia for guiding lactational treatment of nonsevere clinical mastitis. A secondary objective was to describe the pathogen profiles of mastitis-causing organisms in cows managed in barns ("intensive") and on pasture ("nonintensive").

The Effect of Month and District on 100-Day In-Calf Rate in Year-Round Calving Dairy Herds.

Monitoring 100-day in-calf rate (100DICR) is an integral part of the assessment of reproductive performance in year-round calving dairy herds. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of month on 100DICR in year-round calving herds in New South Wales (NSW), Australia and determine whether a fluctuating 100DICR target is an appropriate alternative to a constant 100DICR target. The 100DICR is defined as the percentage of all current lactating cows over 100 days in milk (DIM) that conceive on or before 100 DIM.

Antimicrobial susceptibility testing to evaluate minimum inhibitory concentration values of clinically relevant antibiotics.

Antimicrobial susceptibility testing is used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), the standard measurement of antibiotic activity. Here, we present a protocol for evaluating MIC values of clinically relevant antibiotics against bacterial isolates cultured in standard bacteriologic medium and in mammalian cell culture medium. We describe steps for pathogen identification, culturing bacteria, preparing MIC plates, MIC assay incubation, and determining MIC.

Re-evaluation of FDA-approved antibiotics with increased diagnostic accuracy for assessment of antimicrobial resistance.

Accurate assessment of antibiotic susceptibility is critical for treatment of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) infections. Here, we examine whether antimicrobial susceptibility testing in media more physiologically representative of in vivo conditions improves prediction of clinical outcome relative to standard bacteriologic medium. This analysis reveals that ∼15% of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values obtained in physiologic media predicted a change in susceptibility that crossed a clinical breakpoint used to categorize patient isolates as susceptible or resistant.

A broad-spectrum synthetic antibiotic that does not evoke bacterial resistance.

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a critical threat to public health and disproportionately affects the health and well-being of persons in low-income and middle-income countries. Our aim was to identify synthetic antimicrobials termed conjugated oligoelectrolytes (COEs) that effectively treated AMR infections and whose structures could be readily modified to address current and anticipated patient needs.

Methods: Fifteen chemical variants were synthesized that contain specific alterations to the COE modular structure, and each variant was evaluated for broad-spectrum antibacterial activity and for in vitro cytotoxicity in cultured mammalian cells.

Coagulation factor protein abundance in the pre-septic state predicts coagulopathic activities that arise during late-stage murine sepsis.

Background: Although sepsis accounts for 1 in 5 deaths globally, few molecular therapies exist for this condition. The development of effective biomarkers and treatments for sepsis requires a more complete understanding of host responses and pathogenic mechanisms at early stages of disease to minimize host-driven pathology.

Methods: An alternative to the current symptom-based approach used to diagnose sepsis is a precise assessment of blood proteomic changes during the onset and progression of Salmonella Typhimurium (ST) murine sepsis.

Development of a qPCR for the detection and quantification of spp. in sheep feces and tissues.

spp. are common causes of disease in intensive livestock production systems, and contamination of foodstuffs is of significant concern for public health. Therefore, the identification and quantification of spp.

A review of mycoplasma diagnostics in cattle.

Mycoplasma species have a global distribution causing serious diseases in cattle worldwide including mastitis, arthritis, pneumonia, otitis media and reproductive disorders. Mycoplasma species are typically highly contagious, are capable of causing severe disease, and are difficult infections to resolve requiring rapid and accurate diagnosis to prevent and control disease outbreaks. This review discusses the development and use of different diagnostic methods to identify Mycoplasma species relevant to cattle, with a particular focus on Mycoplasma bovis.

Correcting a Fundamental Flaw in the Paradigm for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing.

The emergence and prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria are an increasing cause of death worldwide, resulting in a global 'call to action' to avoid receding into an era lacking effective antibiotics. Despite the urgency, the healthcare industry still relies on a single in vitro bioassay to determine antibiotic efficacy. This assay fails to incorporate environmental factors normally present during host-pathogen interactions in vivo that significantly impact antibiotic efficacy.

Comparison of culture and a multiplex probe PCR for identifying Mycoplasma species in bovine milk, semen and swab samples.

Mycoplasma spp. are a major cause of mastitis, arthritis and pneumonia in cattle, and have been associated with reproductive disorders in cows. While culture is the traditional method of identification the use of PCR has become more common.

Genetic characterization of Australian Mycoplasma bovis isolates through whole genome sequencing analysis.

Mycoplasma bovis is a major pathogen in cattle causing mastitis, arthritis and pneumonia. First isolated in Australian cattle in 1970, M. bovis has persisted causing serious disease in infected herds.

Development of a loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for the detection of Streptococcus agalactiae in bovine milk.

Streptococcus agalactiae is a well-characterized bovine mastitis pathogen that is known to be highly contagious and capable of spreading rapidly in affected dairy herds. Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a novel molecular diagnostic method that has the capability to provide rapid, cost-effective screening for pathogens to support on-farm disease control and eradication programs. In the current study, a LAMP test was developed to detect S.

Development of a Salmonella cross-protective vaccine for food animal production systems.

Intensive livestock production is associated with increased Salmonella exposure, transmission, animal disease, and contamination of food and water supplies. Modified live Salmonella enterica vaccines that lack a functional DNA adenine methylase (Dam) confer cross-protection to a diversity of salmonellae in experimental models of murine, avian, ovine, and bovine models of salmonellosis. However, the commercial success of any vaccine is dependent upon the therapeutic index, the ratio of safety/efficacy.

Intraspecies variation in the emergence of hyperinfectious bacterial strains in nature.

Salmonella is a principal health concern because of its endemic prevalence in food and water supplies, the rise in incidence of multi-drug resistant strains, and the emergence of new strains associated with increased disease severity. Insights into pathogen emergence have come from animal-passage studies wherein virulence is often increased during infection. However, these studies did not address the prospect that a select subset of strains undergo a pronounced increase in virulence during the infective process- a prospect that has significant implications for human and animal health.

Salmonella in calves.

Salmonellae are endemic on most large intensive farms and salmonellosis is a common cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Disease and mortality usually reflect a variety of management events and environmental stressors that contribute to compromised host immunity and increased pathogen exposure. The diversity of salmonella serovars present on farms, and the potential for different serovars to possess different virulence factors, require the implementation of broad prophylactic strategies that are efficacious for all salmonellae.

Human Salmonella clinical isolates distinct from those of animal origin.

The global trend toward intensive livestock production has led to significant public health risks and industry-associated losses due to an increased incidence of disease and contamination of livestock-derived food products. A potential factor contributing to these health concerns is the prospect that selective pressure within a particular host may give rise to bacterial strain variants that exhibit enhanced fitness in the present host relative to that in the parental host from which the strain was derived. Here, we assessed 184 Salmonella enterica human and animal clinical isolates for their virulence capacities in mice and for the presence of the Salmonella virulence plasmid encoding the SpvB actin cytotoxin required for systemic survival and Pef fimbriae, implicated in adherence to the murine intestinal epithelium.

Cross-protective immunity in calves conferred by a DNA adenine methylase deficient Salmonellaenterica serovar Typhimurium vaccine.

The global trend towards intensive livestock production is associated with increased fecal oral pathogen transmission resulting in a high prevalence of Salmonella. Since many pathogenic Salmonella serovars are often endemic to livestock production systems, it is desirable to develop a vaccine that is capable of eliciting immunity to more than one serovar. Here we examined whether immunization with a modified live Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium vaccine strain lacking the DNA adenine methylase (Dam) conferred protection in calves against a heterologous S.

Effect of a commercial anion dietary supplement on acid-base balance, urine volume, and urinary ion excretion in male goats fed oat or grass hay diets.

Objective: To determine whether feeding a commercial anionic dietary supplement as a urinary acidifier to male goats may be useful for management of urolithiasis.

Animals: 8 adult sexually intact male Toggenburg, Saanen, and Nubian goats.

Procedure: Goats were randomly assigned by age-, breed-, and weight-matched pairs to an oat or grass hay diet that was fed for 12 days.

Evaluation of rumen transfaunation after surgical correction of left-sided displacement of the abomasum in cows.

Objective: To evaluate rumen transfaunation after surgical correction of left-sided displacement of the abomasum (LDA) in cows.

Design: Prospective clinical trial.

Animals: 20 multiparous cows with LDA.

Efficacy of ceftiofur for treatment of experimental salmonellosis in neonatal calves.

Objective: To evaluate therapeutic efficacy of a high extralabel dose of ceftiofur for treatment of experimental salmonellosis in neonatal calves.

Animals: Forty-two 1- to 4-day-old Holstein bull calves.

Procedure: 36 calves were orally challenged with Salmonella enteritica serovar Typhimurium (6.

Urethroscopy and laser lithotripsy for the diagnosis and treatment of obstructive urolithiasis in goats and pot-bellied pigs.

Objective: To explore the use of urethral endoscopy and laser lithotripsy in the diagnosis and management of urolithiasis in goats and pot-bellied pigs.

Design: Prospective clinical study.

Animals: 16 male goats and 6 male pot-bellied pigs with dysuria.