Looking for an academic partner for your discovery projects?
Looking for an academic partner for your discovery projects?
Ghent University offers a unique proposal: the collaboration between veterinarians, physicians and scientists from different disciplines present at Ghent University takes the research to a higher level and creates many opportunities for innovation. At our Faculty of Veterinary Medicine these innovations can be tested in our own facilities and on the target species.
Check what we can offer in these fields
Ghent University offers a unique proposal: the collaboration between veterinarians, physicians and scientists from different disciplines present at Ghent University takes the research to a higher level and creates many opportunities for innovation. At our Faculty of Veterinary Medicine these innovations can be tested in our own facilities and on the target species.
Check what we can offer in these fields
Therapeutics
A probiotic to improve udder health
A live probiotic for intrammary improvement of udder health
Developed from a selected Staphylococcus chromogenes strain originating from bovine milk our strain demonstrates in vitro inhibitory activity against major mastitis pathogens (e.g. Staphylococcus aureus—including methicillin-resistant strains—Escherichia coli, Streptococcus uberis), pro-immune modulation, and its ability to colonize the udder environment.
Designed for use in dairy cattle (potentially goats and sheep) our probiotic supports a balanced mammary gland microbiota, reduces the risk of intramammary infections, and promotes faster recovery following clinical mastitis cases. By enhancing udder health, the product contributes to (indirect) increase in milk production, animal welfare, and reduced reliance on antimicrobial treatments.
In vivo proof of concept in dairy cattle
18 cows were included in the study and treatments (inoculated with the probiotic or non-inoculated) were divided over individual udder quarters (72 quarters). The inoculated quarters not only showed less incidence of sub-clinical and clinical mastitis, the most pronounced/valuable effect was the increased milk production in the inoculated quarters: over the 305-day period of the study an extra gain of 141 liter milk per inoculated quarter (thus 564 liter per cow) was observed. Moreover, the recovery of milk production after an incidence of clinical mastitis was remarkably better in inoculated quarters: a loss of 0,8 liter per quarter on average on the day of clinical mastitis versus 8,5 liter per quarter in non-inoculated quarters.
Partnering
We are reaching out to partners who are interested in development and marketing of our novel probiotic.