Anti-Staphylococcus aureus single-chain variable region fragments provide protection against mastitis in mice

Staphylococcus aureus is a leading causative agent of bovine mastitis, which can result in significant economic losses to the dairy industry. However, available vaccines against bovine mastitis do not confer adequate protection, although passive immunization with antibodies may be useful to prevent disease. Hence, we constructed a bovine single-chain variable region fragment (scFv) phage display library using cDNAs from peripheral blood lymphocytes of cows with S. aureus-induced mastitis. After four rounds of selection, eight scFvs that bound S. aureus antigens with high affinity were obtained. The framework regions of the variable domains (VH and VL) of the eight scFvs were highly conserved, and the complementarity-determining regions (CDRs) displayed significant diversity, especially CDR3 of the VH domain. All eight scFvs inhibited S. aureus growth in culture medium. Lactating mice were challenged by injecting S. aureus into the fourth mammary gland. Histopathological analysis showed that treatment with these scFvs prior to bacterial challenge maintained the structure of the mammary acini, decreased infiltration of polymorphonuclear neutrophils, increased levels of interferon-gamma and interleukin-4, and reduced tumor necrosis factor-alpha levels in mammary tissues, as compared with mice treatment with physiological saline (P < 0.05). These novel bovine scFvs may be suitable candidates for therapeutic agents for the prevention of S. aureus-induced bovine mastitis.