A berberine hydrochloride-carboxymethyl chitosan hydrogel protects against Staphylococcus aureus infection in a rat mastitis model

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is the major pathogen responsible for mastitis in dairy cows, an important threat to their health, but prevention of S. aureus infection of the mammary gland remains challenging. Berberine hydrochloride (BH), a naturally occurring phytochemical, exhibits a wide range of activities, including antibacterial effects on S. aureus. In this study, we prepared a novel berberine hydrochloride-carboxymethyl chitosan hydrogel (BH-CMCH) with excellent thermosensitivity, injectability and in vitro antibacterial activity. In a rat model of mastitis induced by S. aureus, mammary duct injection of BH-CMCH reduced the bacterial load in infected mammary gland tissue and protected the tissue from damage from infection. In addition, proteomics analysis showed that mammary duct injection of BH-CMCH enhanced autolysosome degradation and promoted the innate immune response by activating the lysosomal pathway and up-regulating related significantly differentially expressed proteins (SDEPs). Taken together, the findings support the potential of BH-CMCH as an antibacterial agent against S. aureus-induced mastitis.