Adherence of bacteria to mucus collected from different parts of the reproductive tract of heifers and cows

Abstract

In the present study, we examined the adherence of indigenous vaginal bacteria, probiotic strains, and metritis pathogens to mucus collected from different parts of the reproductive tracts of heifers and cows and compared their adherence with the bacterial adherence to mucus collected from the stomach and large intestine of pigs. Most of the vaginal strains adhered to mucus collected from different parts of the reproductive tract and strongly adhered to gastric mucus, with the exception of Lactobacillus buchneri 24S8. Only Lactobacillus mucosae 29S8, Enterococcus faecium E21, and E. faecium EAC adhered to colonic mucus. Probiotic strains adhered strongly to mucus collected from the reproductive tract and gastric mucus but did not adhere to colonic mucus. Pathogenic strains were adherent to vaginal, uterine horn, and gastric mucus, except Escherichia coli O8:K88ab:H9 (65), Fusobacterium necrophorum, and Gardnerella vaginalis, which adhered to uterine cervix mucus. Only Kocuria kristinae and G. vaginalis adhered to uterine body mucus; E. coli O149:K88ac (EC) adhered to colonic mucus. The strains did not exhibit host specificity but rather strain specificity. The ability to adhere to mucus was a characteristic unique to each strain. To our knowledge, this is the first report regarding in vitro adherence of GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe) lactobacilli isolated from different sources to mucus collected from different parts of the reproductive tract.