New research led by academics at the University of Bristol Veterinary and Medical Schools used the 'One Health' approach to study three bacterial species in the noses of young cattle and found the carriage of the bacteria was surprisingly different.
New research led by academics at the University of Bristol Veterinary and Medical Schools used the 'One Health' approach to study three bacterial species in the noses of young cattle and found the carriage of the bacteria was surprisingly different. The findings which combined ideas and methods from both animal and human health research could help prevent and control respiratory diseases.
Cattle, like humans, harbour a wide range of bacteria in their noses, microbes which are normally present and probably necessary for health like those that live in the gut. However, some species of these bacteria do cause serious illness at times, particularly when infection becomes established in the lower respiratory tract within the lungs.
In an open access paper published in Scientific Reports today [Friday 16 August], the researchers investigated the patterns of acquiring and clearing these microbes in healthy young cattle, which have not previously been studied in detail.
The research team took nasal swabs at intervals during the first year of life, to detect their presence and measure their abundance using a DNA-detection technique called quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) that targeted genes found in three bacterial species well-known for their ability to cause respiratory disease in cattle: Histophilus somni, Mannheimia haemolytica and Pasteurella multocida.
Read more at University of Bristol
Image: A herd of cattle. (Credit: Amy Thomas)
