TOTAL AND DIFFERENTIAL CELL COUNT BY DIRECT MICROSCOPIC METHOD ON EWEMILK

On 700 milk samples from single half udders of Comisana ewes, somatic cell count (SCC) and differential cell count (DCC) were determined, us ing a Fossomatic 90 cell counter (Foss Electric, Denmark) (SCCF) and m ilk smears stained with May Grunwald-Giemsa (DCCS). SCC and DCC were a lso determined with modified KOVA(R) SYSTEM (Hicor Biomedical Inc. Irv ine, CA, USA) (SCCK and DCCK, respectively). Out of 665 milk samples f rom half udders without clinical signs of mastitis, 640 (Class I) were sterile, while 25 (Class II) were bacteriologically positive. Out of 35 milk samples (Class III) from half udders with clinical signs of ma stitis, 25 were bacteriologically positive. Mean results (after logari thmic transformation of cells/ml/10(3)) of SCCF and SCCK for all the 7 00 milk samples were 1.89+/-0.58 and 1.86+/-0.60 with linear correlati on coefficient (r) of 0.960, while least squares means for Class I, II and III were 1.78, 2.23 and 3.73 respectively and 1.75, 2.19 and 3.74 with r of 0.894, 0.979 and 0.987. Mean results of DCCS and DCCK were 38.1+/-23.3, 34.9, 52.1, and 82.2 PMNL% and 41.8+/-21.7, 38.6, 60.2, a nd 87.3 PMNL% with r of 0.855, 0.812, 0.697 and 0.805. The results sho wed high correlation coefficients and a good reliability between SCCK and SCCF and high correlation coefficients for DCC methods. In conclus ion, it could be suggested that the possibility of routine use of the KOVA (R) SYSTEM method is particularly useful in detecting if an abnor mal SCC is due to a polymorphonuclear neutrophil leukocytes increase.