Molecular evaluation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis in bovine milk samples from bulk tank milk of small family farming properties and spatial analysis

• Grant number: 22/08331-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2022
• End date: September 30, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Simone Baldini Lucheis
• Grantee: Lívia Vieira Gardi
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FMB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Tuberculosis is a transmissible infectious disease caused by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (M. tuberculosis). This complex is formed by a set of pathogens, which infects humans and animals, and is composed of seven species of mycobacteria, however the most important in public health are M. tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis). Tuberculosis caused by M. bovis is known as zoonotic tuberculosis when it affects humans and bovine tuberculosis when it infects animals. In 2019, 140,000 cases of zoonotic tuberculosis were estimated worldwide. Contaminated air, water and food are the main ways of spreading the agent and a form of contagion that has been gaining attention is the ingestion of raw milk, a habit still very common among the population, as well as dairy products (for example, cheese and butter). ) produced in an artisanal way, without pasteurization. This work aims to investigate M. tuberculosis and M. bovis in 102 milk samples from lactating cows, collected directly from bulk tank milk of small family farms, located in eight different municipalities in the State of São Paulo. The molecular techniques of conventional PCR and qPCR (real-time PCR) will be used, as well as the genetic sequencing of positive samples. Spatial analysis from the positive samples will be performed in order to verify the distribution of positive cases. (AU)