During the lactation period, mammary epithelial cells secrete large amounts of milk proteins. The coordinate regulation of milk protein expression is effected by the lactogenic hormones. We have investigated the activity of a mammary gland-specific transcription factor (MGF), which mediates hormonal influences at the level of a milk protein gene promoter. MGF-binding sites are present in the pr...

BACKGROUND Mastitis is an acute, debilitating condition that occurs in approximately 20 % of breastfeeding women who experience a red, painful breast with fever. This paper describes the factors correlated with mastitis and investigates the presence of Staphylococcus aureus in women who participated in the CASTLE (Candida and Staphylococcus Transmission: Longitudinal Evaluation) study. The CAST...

Lysozyme is often used as a feed additive and acts as an antimicrobial protein that enhances immune function and defends against pathogenic bacteria in pigs. In this study, we genetically added recombinant human lysozyme (rhLZ) to sow milk by somatic cell nuclear transfer and investigated whether the presence of recombinant human lysozyme can influence intestinal microbiota and morphology in su...

Staphylococcus aureus strains were separated from mastitis milk samples without cultivation by using monodisperse magnetic polymer particles coated with polyclonal antiserum against an encapsulated S. aureus strain. Exopolysaccharide was verified by transmission electron microscopy and the serum soft-agar culture technique. Capsular polysaccharide was found on virtually all clinical isolates. S...

In the present study, two methods of DNA isolation-routine, traditional and standard DNA isolation protocol for Mycobacteria (Method 1) and a new non-chemicals and non-enzymes (physical) method (Method 2) of DNA recovery have been compared and evaluated in IS900 PCR for the specific detection of pathogen. Using the new Method 2, DNA has been recovered from few (1 - 3 colonies), extremely minute...

The aim of study was to assess the incidence of mycotic mastitis in the middle-eastern part of Poland, and to determine genera and species of yeasts, which cause this kind of inflammation. The study involved 2,122 milk samples from cows with clinical and subclinical mastitis from the Lublin and Warsaw regions. The aseptic samples of milk or infected secretions were cultured on the agar and Sabo...

With regard to the aim of cancer prevention and/or treatment, a considerable number of basic studies have indicated that dairy and other plant-originated natural food products may possess anticancer activity. On the growth of human leukemia cells, for example, enzymatically digested skim milk or fermented milk cultured with various bacteria can exhibit differential suppressive activities. Our r...

The role of the endoplasmic reticulum stress-regulated kinase, PERK, in mammary gland function was assessed through generation of a targeted deletion in mammary epithelium. Characterization revealed that PERK is required for functional maturation of milk-secreting mammary epithelial cells. PERK-dependent signaling contributes to lipogenic differentiation in mammary epithelium, and perk deletion...

Identifying interventions that more effectively promote healthy growth of children with undernutrition is a pressing global health goal. Analysis of human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) from 6-month-postpartum mothers in two Malawian birth cohorts revealed that sialylated HMOs are significantly less abundant in those with severely stunted infants. To explore this association, we colonized young g...