title: Experimental infection of dogs with Bartonella henselae and Bartonella vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii.
abstract: The lack of a suitable infection model remains an important obstacle for the pathophysiological understanding of Bartonella spp. The following pilot study was designed to determine whether cell culture-grown Bartonella henselae SA2 and Bartonella vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii genotype III would cause persistent bacteremia in dogs. Pre-inoculation screening established that two laboratory-raised Golden retrievers were naturally-infected with Bartonella koehlerae. Despite prior infection, one dog each was inoculated subcutaneously with 5 × 10(4)B. henselae (SA2 strain) or 3 × 10(4)B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii genotype III. Dogs were bled weekly for serological testing and culture using Bartonella alpha proteobacteria growth medium (BAPGM) diagnostic platform. Dog 1 seroconverted to B. henselae and Dog 2 seroconverted to B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii genotype III. Throughout the study period, Bartonella spp. DNA was neither amplified nor isolated in ante-mortem BAPGM enrichment blood cultures. B. henselae SA2 was isolated from a postmortem bone marrow from Dog 1 and B. koehlerae DNA was amplified from postmortem lung from Dog 2 following BAPGM enrichment culture. Limitations include lack of uninfected controls, a potentially suboptimal B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii inoculum and a relatively short duration of study. We conclude that following intradermal infection, sequestration of Bartonella spp. in tissues may limit diagnostic detection of these bacteria in dog blood samples.
authors.affiliation: Intracellular Pathogens Research Laboratory, Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States.
authors.forename: Nandhakumar
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Balakrishnan
authors.forename: Natalie A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Cherry
authors.forename: Keith E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Linder
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pierce
authors.forename: Neal
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sontakke
authors.forename: Barbara C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Hegarty
authors.forename: Julie M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bradley
authors.forename: Ricardo G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Maggi
authors.forename: Edward B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Breitschwerdt
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D001474:Bartonella Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology; D018416:Bartonella henselae / Q000276:immunology*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology; D004285:Dogs
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D004269:DNA, Bacterial
keywords: BAPGM; Bacteria; Bartonella alpha proteobacteria growth medium; Bartonella henselae SA2; Bartonella vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii genotype III; Dog model; IFA; Isolation; PCR; PID; TCID(50); indirect fluorescent assay; post-inoculation days; tissue culture infectious dose 50