Assessment of persistence of Bartonella henselae in Ctenocephalides felis.
Bartonella henselae (Rhizobiales: Bartonellaceae) is a Gram-negative fastidious bacterium of veterinary and zoonotic importance. The cat flea Ctenocephalides felis (Siphonaptera: Pulicidae) is the main recognized vector of B. henselae, and transmission among cats and humans occurs mainly through infected flea feces. The present study documents the use of a quantitative molecular approach to follow the daily kinetics of B. henselae within the cat flea and its excreted feces after exposure to infected blood for 48 h in an artificial membrane system. B. henselae DNA was detected in both fleas and feces for the entire life span of the fleas (i.e., 12 days) starting from 24 h after initiation of the blood meal.
Laboratoire de Parasitologie et Maladies Parasitaires, INP-ENVT, École Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
Emilie
E
Bouhsira
Michel
M
Franc
Henri-Jean
HJ
Boulouis
Philippe
P
Jacquiet
Isabelle
I
Raymond-Letron
Emmanuel
E
Liénard
D000818:Animals; D058491:Bacterial Load; D018416:Bartonella henselae / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*; D058251:Ctenocephalides / Q000382:microbiology*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D050296:Microbial Viability
D004269:DNA, Bacterial