ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Animal Reproduction - Theriogenology
This article is part of the Research TopicEndometrial Health and Disease: From Molecular Insights to Clinical AdvancesView all 3 articles
In-vitro characterization of antimicrobial efficacy and cytotoxicity of polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine, N-acetylcysteine, methylglyoxal and N‑chlorotaurine as alternative antimicrobials in treating bovine clinical endometritis
Provisionally accepted
- Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmacy, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Hanover, Germany
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Bovine clinical endometritis is a common indication for the usage of antibiotics in dairy cows. Increase of resistance in bacteria and the aspired decrease in antibiotics usage under the One Health concept call for alternatives in treatment. Polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine (PVP), N-acetylcysteine (NAC), methylglyoxal (MGO) and N-chlorotaurine (NCT) are already known substances with antibacterial properties that could potentially pose as those alternatives. In a broth microdilution assay their efficacy against the common endometritis bacterium Trueperella pyogenes was investigated. By cytotoxicity testing on a primary bovine endometrial epithelial cell culture, potential adverse effects on cell proliferation, viability and immune response (IL-6) were examined. While all four substances had an antibacterial effect on Trueperella pyogenes, PVP, MGO and NCT also showed cytotoxic effects. NAC in contrast was tolerated well by the cells. In sum, the four tested substances can be considered potential alternatives to antibiotic treatments. Further research is, however, necessary to investigate their toxic effects in ex vivo or in vivo models and find effective dosages in the animal.
Keywords: Bovine endometritis, alternative antibacterials, Cytotoxicity, Trueperella pyogenes, Primary Cell Culture
Received: 05 Sep 2025; Accepted: 12 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Pas, Oltmanns and Meißner. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Dijana Pas
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