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Aim: This study was conducted to determine the role of Staphylococcus in the formation of subclinical mastitis in cows and to isolate the phage against isolated Staphylococcus aureus strains. Materials and Methods: In this study, 400 milk cows were screened by California Mastitis Test (CMT) for subclinical mastitis and 235 udders of 96 cows, which were determined to be positive, were evaluated for Staphylococcus. Milk samples were evaluated using conventional and molecular methods. In addition, phage isolation studies were performed against S. aureus strains causing mastitis. Results: At the result of cultural examination, of 235 milk samples that were found as positive for mastitis by CMT, a total of 117 (49.7%) Staphylococcus spp. were isolated as a distribution of 74 (63.24%) coagulase-positive staphylococci and 43 (36.75%) coagulase-negative staphylococci. Of these isolates, 76 (64.95%) were characterized as S. aureus both conventional and molecular techniques. Lytic bacteriophages against two S. aureus strains which were isolated from mastitic milk samples were obtained from wastewater samples. Conclusion: The results of this study show that a significant portion of subclinical mastitis was formed by staphylococci. In addition, phage isolation against S. aureus strains isolated can be considered as one of the steps to be applied in the prophylaxis and treatment of such infections.

Brucellosis is an important infectious disease that aff ects animal and public health in many developing countries, including Turkey. The control and eradication of brucellosis are contingent upon methods that provide a fast and reliable diagnosis. In this context, molecular methods which enable the enzymatic amplification of bacterial conserved gene regions are advantageous. In this study, samples of cattle and sheep blood serum sent to our laboratory from enterprises at risk of brucellosis in diff erent settlements of the Central Anatolia and the Black Sea Regions of Turkey were analyzed. In our study, we aimed to investigate brucellosis using serological methods and Real-Time PCR (RT-PCR), and to analyze these methods comparatively. To this end, RBPT, SAT and CFT tests, as well as the Brucella RT-PCR, which enables the amplification of the BCSP31 gene found in all Brucella species, were used. In the 368 serum samples analyzed, Brucella positivity was determined as 11.41%, 10.05% and 9.8% by RBPT, SAT and CFT, respectively, while the RT-PCR gave the same rate of positivity (9.8%) as CFT. When CFT is taken as a reference test, the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value and diagnostic accuracy of the RTPCR were determined as 100%; and it was found to be perfectly compatible with CFT, with a kappa value of 1.000. The number of bacterial genomes that could be detected by the RT-PCR in the presence of DNA of the Brucella melitensis biotype 3 (Ether) reference strain was determined as 3.94x103 copies. Linear regression analysis revealed that the amplification efficiency (92.71%) of the RT-PCR was within the desired limits (90-110%) and that the RT-PCR was repeatable (CV 2.9%) and reproducible (CV 1.8%). This study indicates that the RT-PCR is a useful method for application in the diagnosis of bovine and sheep brucellosis thanks to its high analytical efficiency; it also emphasizes the importance of blood serum samples as preferable clinical materials in this context.

Campylobacteriosis is a contagious and zoonotic infection characterized by abortion and infertility in cattle and sheep. The objective of this study was to investigate Campylobacter spp. cause to abortion in sheep herds in Kars province. For this purpose, a total of 350 vaginal swab samples obtained from sheep with abortion were examined by cultural and molecular methods. Swab samples were inoculated on Preston Campylobacter Selective Agar for isolation of Campylobacter species. Following the incubation, suspected colonies were subjected to Gram staining, mobility, oxidase and catalase tests for identification. Multiplex PCR (m-PCR) was used for the identification of Campylobacter isolates at species level. Campylobacter spp. was isolated in 8 (2.28%) of the 350 vaginal swab samples examined. Of 5 isolates were identified as Campylobacter jejuni and 3 were C. coli by m-PCR. According to the data obtained from this study, it was revealed that Campylobacter species should be taken into consideration in the abortion cases of sheep in this region. Considering the risk of this infectio

Aim: A small part of field Brucella strain collection of Kafkas University was evaluated by different methods in this study. Materials and Methods: The strains were originated from cattle and sheep which had a history of abortion. Thirty field Brucella strains (16 were originated from sheep and 14 were from cattle) were randomly selected and included in the study. In addition of standardized phenotypical characterization, genus specific real-time PCR and species specific Bruce-Ladder PCR were conducted for molecular typing. Results: Out of 16 sheep and 14 cattle samples 15 and 13 were identified as B. melitensis and B. abortus, respectively. Interestingly one strain was characterized as B. abortus isolated from aborted sheep foetus and the other as B. melitensis from aborted cattle milk sample. Furthermore one strain from aborted sheep foetus was unable to be confirmed as Brucella spp. by genotypically (neither by real-time PCR nor Bruce-Ladder PCR) though all phenotypic features were similar to Brucella genus and kept under strict conditions for future characterization on suspicion of Ochrobactrum spp. Conclusions: These report alleges that Brucella crossinfection among certain hosts ceased to be extraordinary and gained an usual face over time. These kind of efforts would help in further understanding the evolution, host specificity and pathogenicity of the genus Brucella.