Yeasts isolation from bovine mammary glands under different mastitis status in the Mexican High Plateu

Background: The mastitis subclinical and clinical in cows caused by fungi has been increased specially by yeast of the genus Candida.

Objective: To identify what yeasts were present in milk samples obtained from mammary glands of healthy cows, and others suffering subclinical or clinical mastitis.

Methods: From a total of 1,095 milk samples 342 were from mammary glands of healthy dairy cows, 383 with subclinical mastitis, and 370 with clinical mastitis, were taken, in the states of Querétaro, Hidalgo, Puebla and Mexico City (Distrito Federal) in the so called Mexican High Plateu. The clinical status of the mammary glands was determined by clinical examination and the California Mastitis Test. Yeasts identification was carried out by morphology and biochemical methods.

Results: Twenty different species of Candida were identified out of 282 (25.75%) milk samples. The most frequently identified species in the healthy cows and cows with clinical mastitis groups were Candida glabrata and Candida krusei. On the other hand, samples from the subclinical mastitis group showed a diversity of Candida species, including Candida zeylanoides, Candida norvegica, Candida viswanathii, Candida guilliermondii, and Candida tropicalis. Candida albicans was isolated only in 11 (3.9%) samples from the clinical and subclinical mastitis groups.

Conclusions: These results suggest the possible role that Candida species other than C. albicans may play in mycotic mastitis in cows.