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Bovine lymphocyte antigen (BoLA) DRB3 locus in healthy and mastitis affected cattle has been genotyped by a polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphisms (PCR-RLFP) using RsaI restriction enzyme, followed by sequencing. In 130 farm animals, 25 BoLA DRB3 alleles have been detected by PCR-RFLP. Three distinct allelic patterns significantly associated with mastitis in Karan Fries crossbred and Sahiwal indicus cattle have been identified, whereas, four other allelic patterns were significantly high in frequency among healthy animals. Sequencing of RFLP genotypes revealed 25 and 47 alleles among healthy Sahiwal and Karan Fries, respectively, while 17 and 38 patterns observed in mastitis affected Sahiwal and Karan Fries animals, respectively. From Tajima's D-test of neutrality, it was concluded that alleles associated with mastitis were expanding in the population, whereas those of healthy were under contraction. Phylogenetic analysis carried out to delineate the evolutionary relationship of the farm and field animals at DRB3 locus, differentiating allelic patterns into six different clusters. Among the phylogenetic lineages, five patterns DRB3*028:01, DRB3*011:03, DRB3*031:01, DRB3*001:01 and DRB3*043:01, were previously reported, whereas one novel allelic variant was observed in indicus and crossbred cattle. This information will help in further exploring the association between BoLA-DRB3 genetic diversity and disease resistance in distinct cattle breeds, important in designing breeding strategies for increasing the distribution of favorable alleles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses research which investigated the effects of feeding A1 an A2 cow milk-based diet on biochemical parameters in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic experimental mice model. The study measured liver function, kidney function and triglyceride levels using automatic biochemical analyzer. It analyzed the relation of parameters of liver including serum alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, protein and albumin levels in A1 and A2 genotypes to diabetic state.

The blood leucocytes, neutrophils being the first line of defense, detect the implanting embryo, which is semi-allogenic, and show changes in their gene expression. It is possible to diagnose cattle as non-pregnant around 21–24 days post insemination by progesterone (P4) assay. Concentration of progesterone level in the inseminated animals may not be an accurate method for early pregnancy diagnosis. Identification of suitable methods that allow pregnancy diagnosis around or before day 20 after artificial insemination (AI) will be of considerable value. The present study has been carried out to understand the differential gene expression of IFI16 (interferon-inducible protein 16), MX1 (Myxovirus resistance 1), OAS1 (2'-5'-Oligoadenylate Synthetase 1) and TNFα (tumor necrosis factor alpha) genes on 0, 4, 8, 12, 15, 18 and 21 days post AI, respectively, from Karan Fries cattle as a tool for early pregnancy diagnosis in neutrophil cells isolated from blood and milk. Statistical analysis between pregnant and non-pregnant animals in both blood and milk samples revealed that IFI16 gene was upregulated in the milk samples of pregnant animals on 8th day post-AI and found to be significantly different (P < 0.05) between pregnant and non-pregnant cattle and may be used as a biomarker for early pregnancy detection in cattle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lactoferrin (Lf) is a multifunctional bi-lobate iron-binding glycoprotein belonging to transferrin family with a mass of approximately 80 kD. Being ubiquitously present in almost all biological secretions, it performs important biological functions. One of the earliest and very well-documented functions of Lf is the antibacterial effect against broad spectrum Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. In this study, buffalo Lf N-lobe cDNA was amplified, cloned and expressed as a fusion protein in Escherichia coli cells using pQE30 expression vector. After post-induction confirmation of expressed protein by SDS-PAGE, purification of recombinant protein using Ni-NTA was attempted and the yield of recombinant buffalo N-lobe Lf was estimated to be 1 mg/ml. Antibacterial activity of recombinant buffalo Lf N-lobe was assessed on pathogenic E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus strains. Peptic digest of recombinant N-lobe buffalo Lf showed antibacterial activity comparable to commercially available bovine Lf. The successful expression and characterization of functional recombinant N-lobe of buffalo Lf expressed in E. coli opens new vistas for developing alternate therapeutics, particularly against the diseases caused by Gram-negative microbes such as septicemia and diarrhea in newborn calves and mastitis in dairy animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A letter to the editor is presented about the protein contents of milk from dairy cows and its impact on human health.