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Video microscopy as an alternative method for somatic cell count in milk

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 January 2005

Jesús A Baro ,
Patricia Roldán ,
Carlos E Carleos ,
Gustavo J Grillo  and
Miguel A Pérez
Jesús A Baro
Affiliation:
Dept CC Agroforestales, Universidad de Valladolid, 34004 Palencia, Spain
Patricia Roldán
Affiliation:
Area Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad de Oviedo, 33204 Gijón, Spain
Carlos E Carleos
Affiliation:
Dept Estadística Investigación Operativa, Universidad de Oviedo, 33007 Oviedo, Spain
Gustavo J Grillo
Affiliation:
Area Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad de Oviedo, 33204 Gijón, Spain
Miguel A Pérez
Affiliation:
Area Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad de Oviedo, 33204 Gijón, Spain
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Abstract

This paper presents an alternative method to estimate somatic cell count (SCC) in cows' milk. SCC is an important indicator in the detection of inflammatory reactions within the udder in cows and Direct Optical Microscopy (DOM) is the present reference method for SCC but, owing to its dependence on human operators, it is extremely costly, time-consuming and potentially subjective. The industrial method of choice is Epifluorescence (EF), which has the potential for impressive throughput and acceptable precision, but requires huge inversions and handling of highly toxic reactives and waste. In this paper, an advantageous method that involves application of a low-cost Video Microscopy (VM) system is analysed and discussed, including a comparison between DOM and VM, and an example of application of both methods to evaluate EF counts. We conclude that VM is sufficiently precise and very cheap to implement and operate.

Keywords

Direct optical microscopyepifluorescencecows' milk
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Dairy Research , Volume 72 , Issue 1 , February 2005 , pp. 93 - 100
Copyright
Proprietors of Journal of Dairy Research 2005

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