Mycoplasma californicum. Mycoplasmopsis californica

Mycoplasma californicum is a causal bacterium of bovine mastitis, arthritis, and pneumonia as well as an indigenous bacterium of cattle. In Japan, the causal agents of mycoplasmal mastitis were limited for many years to either M. bovis or M. bovigenitalium, but the number of cases of mastitis caused by M. californicum has been increasing since 2005. As with the mastitis by M. bovis, the mastitis by M. californicum features strong infectivity, severe symptoms, and poor response to treatment with antibiotics. Moreover, outbreaks of mycoplasmal mastitis are often accompanied by major economic losses, such as the need to cull the cows. Genome information of M. californicum has not been released for now. Our aim of this study is 1. clarification of genome information of M. californicum, 2. analysis of virulence genes which M. californicum possessed, 3. development of novel genotyping method for M. californicum, 4 clarification of pathogenic mechanism of bovine diseases by M. californicum.