author(s)
Taruna Bhati, Kumar Gaurav, Pragya Nathiya, Sunita Choudhary, Diwakar and Anil Kumar Kataria

abstract
Production of slime (biofilm) by Staphylococcus aureus is an important virulence factor in the pathogenesis of mastitis. In the present study 107 S. aureus isolates from bovine mastitic milk (n=51), udder surfaces (n=35) and milkers’ hands (n=21) from different places were examined for in vitro slime production and for the presence of ica locus, icaA and icaD genes. On CRA, 104 (97.2%) isolates of S. aureus from various sources and places produced slime with 50 (98.0%), 34 (97.1%) and 20 (95.2%) isolates from mastitic milk samples, udder and milkers’ hands, respectively producing slime. All the isolates carried icaD gene while a high number of tested strains, 94/107 (87.9%), carried icaA gene. The prevalence of icaA gene was 90.2%, 88.6% and 81% in isolates from mastitic milk, udder surfaces and milkers’ hands, respectively. Hence a higher number of slime producing S. aureus isolates, both phenotypically and genotypically, of bovine origin were recovered in the present study. Further the presence of ica locus is not always associated with in vitro slime production.