title: Molecular detection of Bartonella spp. in the dental pulp of stray cats buried for a year.
abstract: Bartonella henselae causes chronic bacteremia in cats. To test if B. henselae DNA can be recovered from the dental pulp of cats buried a year previously, we used PCR with primers for a sequence of the conserved groEL to test 104 teeth from 11 cats. Seven of the cats were found positive; canine teeth were more frequently positive than molar teeth. Where PCR sequences could be determined, they were identical to those of B. henselae Marseille (four cats), B. henselae Houston (one cat) or similar to those of B. grahamii (one cat). Our study indicates that dental pulp from the teeth of cats, especially the canine teeth, may be used for the PCR detection of Bartonella in animals buried for a year.
authors.affiliation: Unité des Rickettsies, CNRS UMR 6020, IFR 48, Faculté de Médecine, Université de la Méditerranée, 27, Boulevard Jean Moulin, Marseille Cedex 05 13385, France.
authors.forename: Gérard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Aboudharam
authors.forename: Dang La
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Vu
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Davoust
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Drancourt
authors.forename: Didier
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Raoult
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D001473:Bartonella / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001474:Bartonella Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D018416:Bartonella henselae / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002048:Burial; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D002415:Cats; D018834:Chaperonin 60 / Q000235:genetics; D003481:Cuspid / Q000382:microbiology; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D003782:Dental Pulp / Q000382:microbiology*; D049249:Exhumation; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D008963:Molar / Q000382:microbiology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D018834:Chaperonin 60; D004269:DNA, Bacterial