Pathogen detection in milk samples by ligation detection reaction-mediated universal array method

This paper describes a new DNA chip, based on the use of a ligation detection reaction coupled to a universal array, developed to detect and analyze, directly from milk samples, microbial pathogens known to cause bovine, ovine, and caprine mastitis or to be responsible for foodborne intoxication or infection, or both. Probes were designed for the identification of 15 different bacterial groups: Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus agalactiae, nonaureus staphylococci, Streptococcus bovis, Streptococcus equi, Streptococcus canis, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Streptococcus parauberis, Streptococcus uberis, Streptococcus pyogenes, Mycoplasma spp., Salmonella spp., Bacillus spp., Campylobacter spp., and Escherichia coli and related species. These groups were identified based on the 16S rRNA gene. For microarray validation, 22 strains from the American Type Culture Collection or other culture collections and 50 milk samples were tested. The results demonstrated high specificity, with sensitivity as low as 6 fmol. Moreover, the ligation detection reaction-universal array assay allowed for the identification of Mycoplasma spp. in a few hours, avoiding the long incubation times of traditional microbiological identification methods. The universal array described here is a versatile tool able to identify milk pathogens efficiently and rapidly.