Impact of livestock hygiene education programs on mastitis in smallholder water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) in Chitwan, Nepal

A project implemented from 2003 to 2005 trained women in Chitwan District, Nepal, in hygienic dairy production using a process of social mobilization. The aim of this research was to assess if the prevalence of mastitis in water buffalo in the households of women who were trained was lower one year after training than in untrained households, if the training influenced knowledge and practices for the prevention or control of mastitis, and if these practices and knowledge were associated with a lower prevalence of mastitis. A total of 202 households from Eastern and Western Chitwan District were included in the study. Of these, 60 households had participated in the project and 142 had not. Milk samples were collected from 129 households (33 project households and 96 non-project households). Clinical mastitis was determined using visual inspection of udders and detection of macroscopic clots and flakes in milk. The California Mastitis Test was used to diagnose sub-clinical mastitis from milk samples, and the IDEXX SNAP test to identify the presence of tetracycline residues. The prevalence of mastitis in trained households (39.4%) was 43.78% of that in untrained households (60.4%), lower but not significantly so (p = 0.08, 95% CI 0.17–1.12). Thirteen indicators of knowledge or practice for the control or prevention of mastitis were more likely to occur in trained households, four significantly so (not consuming milk from sick buffalo (p = 0.001), using soap to wash hands before milking (p = 0.001), discarding milk after antibiotic usage (p = 0.01), and choosing appropriate flooring for their livestock (p = 0.03)). Trained households that discarded milk from sick buffalo were 2.96 times more likely to have at least one animal with mastitis in the household (p = 0.03, 95% CI 1.15–7.65). Trained households that knew to wash buffalos’ teats after milking were less likely (OR 0.25) to have mastitis in their herd (p = 0.02, 95% CI 0.08–0.80). Of the 138 buffalos tested, only one tested positive for tetracycline residues

Lactoferrin Concentration in Buffalo Milk

The objective of this study was to quantify lactoferrin (Lfe) in buffalo milk and to examine the factors affecting milk Lfe, such as the lactation stage, daily milk yield, parity, and milk somatic cells count (SCC). Milk Lfe concentration was detected by the SDS-polyacrilamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The overall mean of Lfe concentration was 0.332±0.165 g/L and ranged from 0.030 to 0.813 g/L. Milk Lfe concentrations increased (P<0.01) with the increase of days in milk, but it was not affected by parity. It was estimated an increase of 0.0015 g/L daily of Lfe in milk during lactation. Milk Lfe concentration was significantly affected by SCC. The differences became significant when the levels of SCC increased up to 200.000/mL. This is the first investigation on the levels of Lfe in buffalo milk in reference to daily milk production, lactation stage, parity and SCC. Further studies are needed to clarify the relationship between Lfe and SCC in buffalo milk

Perfil da contagem de células somáticas na infecção intramamária em búfalas na Região Nordeste do Brasil

Objetivou-se com esse estudo avaliar o perfil de células somáticas na mastite subclínica em búfalas leiteiras no Nordeste do Brasil. Foram analisadas 1896 amostras de leite de 474 búfalas procedentes de quatro propriedades de exploração leiteira nos Estados de Pernambuco, Alagoas, Bahia e Ceará. A secreção láctea de cada teto foi submetida ao Califórnia Mastitis Test (CMT) e as amostras positivas, a partir de duas cruzes foram coletadas para realização da contagem de células somáticas (CCS) e exame microbiológico. Observou-se que as amostras positivas no exame microbiológico apresentaram CCS entre 280.000 a 401.000 cel/mL com mediana de 328.000 cel/mL. Conclui-se que valores de CCS acima de 280.000 cel/mL é um indicativo de infecção da glândula mamária, contudo o exame microbiológico do leite é o melhor método para diagnóstico da mastite subclínica em búfalas. A observação dos Staphylococcus coagulase negativa exercendo influência na elevação da CCS deve ser objeto de outros estudos para elucidar a patogenicidade desse grupo de microrganismos na mastite de búfalas