Vet World Vol.16 August-2023 Article-8
Research Article
Veterinary World, 16(8): 1636-1646
https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2023.1636-1646
Molecular characterization of gliotoxin-producing Aspergillus fumigatus in dairy cattle feed
2. Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary, University of Prishtina "Hasan Prishtina",10000 Pristina, Kosovo.
3. National Food Safety Authority, Aswan Branch, Aswan 81511, Egypt.
4. Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Aswan Office, Aswan 81511, Egypt.
5. Division of Pathology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar-243122, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, India.
6. Department of Mycology, Animal Health Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center (ARC), P.O. 12618, Gizza, Egypt.
7. Biochemistry Unit, Animal Health Research Institute Agriculture Research Center (ARC), P.O. 12618, Gizza, Egypt.
8. Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Assiut University, Egypt.
9. Department of Cell and Tissues, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut 71526, Egypt.
Background and Aim: Several strains of Aspergillus fumigatus produce mycotoxins that affect the health and productivity of dairy cattle, and their presence in dairy cattle feed is a serious concern. This study aimed to determine the densities of A. fumigatus and gliotoxin in commercial dairy feed.
Materials and Methods: More than 60 dairy feed samples were examined for fungal contamination, specifically for A. fumigatus, using phenotypic approaches and DNA sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and β-tubulin regions. Thin-layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were used to assess gliotoxin production in A. fumigatus. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to investigate the expression of gliZ, which was responsible for gliotoxin production. High-performance liquid chromatography was used to detect gliotoxin in feed samples.
Results: Aspergillus was the most commonly identified genus (68.3%). Aspergillus fumigatus was isolated from 18.3% of dairy feed samples. Only four of the 11 A. fumigatus isolates yielded detectable gliotoxins by HPLC. In total, 7/11 (43.7%) feed samples tested had gliotoxin contamination above the threshold known to induce immunosuppressive and apoptotic effects in vitro. The HPLC-based classification of isolates as high, moderate, or non-producers of gliotoxin was confirmed by RT-PCR, and the evaluation of gliZ expression levels corroborated this classification.
Conclusion: The identification of A. fumigatus from animal feed greatly depended on ITS and β-tubulin sequencing. Significant concentrations of gliotoxin were found in dairy cattle feed, and its presence may affect dairy cow productivity and health. Furthermore, workers face contamination risks when handling and storing animal feed. Keywords: Aspergillus fumigatus, cattle feed, gliotoxin, gliZ, high-performance liquid chromatography, real-time polymerase chain reaction.
Keywords: Aspergillus fumigatus, cattle feed, gliotoxin, gliZ, high-performance liquid chromatography, real-time polymerase chain reaction.
How to cite this article: Mohamed HMA, Haziri I, Saied AA, Dhama K, Al-Said AA, Abdou SE, Kamaly HF, and Abd-Elhafeez HH (2023) Molecular characterization of gliotoxin-producing Aspergillus fumigatus in dairy cattle feed, Veterinary World, 16(8): 1636-1646.
Received: 09-05-2023 Accepted: 12-07-2023 Published online: 17-08-2023
Corresponding author: Imer Haziri E-mail: imer.haziri@uni-pr.edu
DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2023.1636-1646
Copyright: Mohamed HMA, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.