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Review
. 2022 Aug;29(8):103368.
doi: 10.1016/j.sjbs.2022.103368. Epub 2022 Jul 1.

New approaches for risk assessment and management of bovine protothecosis

Giancarlo Bozzo  1 , Michela Maria Dimuccio  1 , Gaia Casalino  1 , Edmondo Ceci  1 , Marialaura Corrente  1
Affiliations
Review

New approaches for risk assessment and management of bovine protothecosis

Giancarlo Bozzo et al. Saudi J Biol Sci. 2022 Aug.

Abstract

Protothecosis is a potential zoonosis related to bovine mastitis. In several countries, a higher incidence of protothecal bovine mastitis that is being recorded and the resistance of Prototheca species to various factors (chlorine, high temperatures, antimicrobial and antiseptic treatments, pH variations), make it difficult to control its spread among farms. The authors aim to describe the infection caused by microalgae, focusing on the problems within cattle farms and proposing new approaches to farm management, based on Regulation (EU) No 2016/429 on transmissible animal diseases. This new flexible approach, based on risk analysis, is a further tool in protecting against Prototheca species. The list of transmissible animal diseases under Regulation (EU) No 2016/429 includes those caused by microorganisms resistant to antimicrobials, which can have important implications for human and animal health, feed and food safety. This approach would involve a series of changes to the rules used for Official Controls (Regulation (EU) No 2017/625) moving from the concept of the food chain to that of the agri-food chain.

Keywords: Bovine mastitis; Prototheca; Risk analysis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Prototheca spp. isolated from milk samples. Cells in different phases of development: (i) the stage of dividing septum and (ii) during endospores forming (light microscopy - Methylene Blue × 40).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Prototheca spp. isolated from milk samples. Cells with granular content and dividing septum (light microscopy - Methylene Blue × 40).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Dairy cattle. Slight atrophy of the quarter of the mammary gland affected by Prototheca spp.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Prototheca organisms in bovine mammary gland. Dilated mammary acini associated with destruction of their epithelium (light microscopy - Hematoxylin Eosin × 20).
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Prototheca organisms in bovine mammary gland. Damage of mammary alveoli with Prototheca in dark clusters (light microscopy - Hematoxylin Eosin × 40).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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