The status of Mycoplasma bovis infection in clinical mastitis cases in China

In this study, ELISA and PCR were used to examine paired serum and milk samples (n = 850) from China and milk samples (n = 860) from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region from 2008 to 2015. The annual proportion of Mycoplasma bovis-positive mastitis samples in China and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region fluctuated inexplicably, with total average positivity value of 53.0% and 34.2%, respectively. We propose that the monthly variation in the proportion of M. bovis-positive mastitis milk in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region is related to the pathogen's survival in the environment, which requires further confirmation. The results highlight the severity of M. bovis infection in clinical mastitis in China.