Är PCR-analys av heljuverprov en effektiv metod för bakteriologisk undersökning?

Today conventional culture is the most commonly used technique for bacteriological diagnosis of milk samples at suspected cases of mastitis. However, a new technique using PCR has been developed where DNA from bacteria in milk samples can be detected, but the new technique is not fully evaluated yet and the interpretation of the results from the PCR analysis needs to be investigated more. Our main subject is whether PCR analysis of whole udder samples is an effective method for bacteriological investigation of milk samples from clinical healthy cows. We want to investigate how well findings of bacteria in one whole udder sample analyzed with PCR corresponds to findings of bacteria in quarter milk samples taken at the same occasion or repeatedly analyzed using conventional culturing. Moreover, we also want to investigate associations between somatic cell counts, LDH, NAGse and AP activity on cow level and the bacterial findings in whole udder samples taken at the same occasion.