PTX3 and infection: PTX3 together with S100A12 that could assist defense of the mammary gland against chronic and subclinical infections, have also been reported to be up-regulated in milk somatic cells in response to S. aureus infection in goats [54] and the resulting proteins were shown to be present in bovine milk, helping to resolve the mammary tissue infection as well as potentially contributing to the maturation of the newborn calf epithelium and establishment of the newborn gut microbial population [42].