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Detection of stapylococcal enterotoxin, methicillin-resistant and Panton–Valentine leukocidin genes in coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from cows and ewes with subclinical mastitis

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Abstract

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) are the most prevalent mastitis pathogens. However, virulence characteristics of CNS have not been well determined. The presence of genes for enterotoxins (sea-sej), toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 (tst), the exfoliative toxins (eta, etb), Panton–Valentine leukocidin (pvl) and mecA of CNS species isolated from cows and ewes with subclinical mastitis was investigated in this study. A total of 121 CNS (81 cows, 40 ewes) representing 18 different Staphylococci species were examined by PCR, and 38.1% (33 cows and 13 ewes) of CNS isolates had one or more se genes. The difference between percentages for SE toxin genes of CNS strains isolated from cows (40.7%) and ewes (32.5%) was not statistically significant (P > 0.05; χ 2 = 0.380). It was found that S. simulans isolates had the highest prevalent se genes. Furthermore, the most common SE gene types was seh-sej. In this study, none of the isolates harbored the toxic shock syndrome toxin gene (tsst) and the exfoliative toxin genes (eta, etb). Five cow (6.17%) and three ewe CNS (7.5%) isolates had mecA gene. Three cow (3.7%) and two ewe CNS (5.0%) isolates had pvl gene. In conclusion, the present study showed that CNS species isolated from cows and ewes could serve as potential reservoir of se, mecA, and pvl genes.

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  1. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Microbiology, Kirikkale University, Kirikkale, Turkey

    Nilgün Ünal & Oya Doğu Çinar

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  1. Nilgün Ünal
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  2. Oya Doğu Çinar
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Correspondence to Nilgün Ünal.

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Ünal, N., Çinar, O.D. Detection of stapylococcal enterotoxin, methicillin-resistant and Panton–Valentine leukocidin genes in coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from cows and ewes with subclinical mastitis. Trop Anim Health Prod 44, 369–375 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-011-0032-x

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