A pilot study on bacterial isolates associated with purulent vaginal discharge in dairy cows in the south-west region of Western Australia.

This study aimed to determine the bacterial isolates associated with postpartum endometritis among dairy cows in Western Australia and their antimicrobial susceptibility profiles. A cross-sectional study was conducted between June-October 2020. Endometritis was defined as evidence of mucopurulent to purulent vaginal discharge 60-100 days postpartum. Vaginal discharge samples were obtained, cultured, identified and tested for antimicrobial susceptibility. A total of 118 bacterial isolates were grown from 46 animals, representing 36 species. The bacteria isolated from both aerobic and anaerobic cultures included Bacillus (60.2%), Streptococcus (12.7%), Trueperella (10.1%), Escherichia (6.7%) and Staphylococcus (5.9%). The remaining genera <5% were Histophilus, Aeroccocus, Enterococcus and Moraxella. Resistance was variable between isolates, but the highest resistance levels were observed in Streptococcal and Bacillus isolates to enrofloxacin, clindamycin and erythromycin, respectively. All Streptococcal isolates exhibited 100% resistance to enrofloxacin, and the greatest resistance levels were found in Streptococcus luteinises to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole 83%, clindamycin 66% and 33% quinupristin-dalfopristin. There was 84.5% resistance to clindamycin and 35.2% to erythromycin in the Bacillus isolates, with the highest resistance found in Bacillus licheniformis and Bacillus subtilis. Escherichia coli exhibited 12.5% resistance to gentamycin, ceftiofur, whereas amoxicillin-clavulanic acid exhibited 37.5%. Within the Staphylococcal isolates, 28.5%, 28.5%, 42.8% and 14.2% resistance to ceftiofur, erythromycin, cefoxitin, penicillin and tetracycline were observed, respectively. The presence of resistance to important antimicrobials for human use, such as cephalosporins, macrolides and fluoroquinolones, highlights the need for judicious use of antimicrobials in dairy cattle.

Adipose invasion of muscle in Wagyu cattle: Monitoring by histology and melting temperature.

Remarkably, Wagyu cattle progressively desaturate intramuscular and subcutaneous fat leading to melting temperatures (Tm) well below 38°C. In parallel, the adipose tissue expands, arborises and invades the muscle. The process is aggressive in that it leads to loss of myofibres resulting in much smaller fascicles and therefore fine marbling or snowflaking. The "Microscopic score" appears to be an excellent measure of marbling especially for lesser and greater degrees which are not quantified reliably by others methods. By comparing muscle groups, we conclude that the tailhead is a suitable site for sequential monitoring. Melting temperatures of intramuscular and subcutaneous tissue are also useful.

Efecto de la infección periodontal por porphyromonas gingivalis en el desarrollo de ateroesclerosis en ratones deficientes de apolipoproteína E / Effects of porphyromona gingivalis periodontal infection upon atherosclerosis development in apolipoprotein-E

Introducción: Nuestro grupo recientemente demostró una asociación significativa entre periodontitis, placas coronarias aguda y extensión de la enfermedad coronaria aterosclerótica en pacientes con síndrome coronario agudo. Objetivo: Desarrollar un modelo experimental animal para estudiar el posible efecto pro-aterogénico de la inducción de periodontitis por Porphyromona Gingivalis (PG) en ratones deficientes en la apolipoproteína E (APO-E KO). Métodos: En 12 ratones APO-E KO mantenidos con dieta hiperlipidémica se realizaron tocaciones con PG cepa ATCC 53977 en el surco gingival de los molares mandibulares a las 8 semanas de vida. Igual número de ratones APO-E KO fue intervenido con el mismo procedimiento, pero sólo con el vehículo de las tocaciones. Estos procedimientos se repitieron a las 48, 72 y 120 hrs de la infección inicial. Luego de 4 semanas post-inoculación con PG se realizaron estudios histomorfométricos en la aorta proximal para medir la severidad de las lesiones ateromatosas y en las mandíbulas, para evaluar la pérdida del hueso alveolar. Resultados: No se observó una diferencia significativa en el daño del hueso alveolar en las mandíbulas de los animales infectados versus el grupo control. En las aortas, la razón tamaño placa/pared vascular fue mayor en el grupo infectado con PG que en el grupo control (0.132 ± 0.2 versus 0.103 ± 0.15, respectivamente), pero esta diferencia no fue estadísticamente significativa. Conclusión: El diseño experimental del presente estudio no permitió establecer si la periodontitis inducida por PG es capaz o no de acelerar el proceso aterogénico de los ratones APO-E KO. Será necesario aplicar un protocolo de infección periodontal más agresivo en estos animales para evaluar más adecuadamente el efecto de PG sobre la ateroesclerosis.