Bartonella alsatica

Abstract: Currently, 19 species are recognized in the genus Bartonella, 7 of which are involved in an increasing variety of human diseases. Development of molecular tools for detection, identification, and subtyping of strains and isolates has promoted research on Bartonella spp. We amplified and sequenced the portion of the ftsZ gene encoding the N-terminal region of the cell division protein for 13 Bartonella species: Bartonella alsatica, B. birtlesii, B. doshiae, B. elizabethae, B. grahami, B. koehlerae, B. schoenbuchensis, B. taylorii, B. tribocorum, Bartonella vinsonii subsp. arupensis, Bartonella vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii, Bartonella vinsonii subsp. vinsonii, and B. bovis Bermond et al.(“B. weissii”). Phylogenetically derived trees revealed four statistically supported groups, indicating that sequencing of the ftsZ gene is a useful tool for identifying evolutionary relationships among Bartonella species. Furthermore, we amplified and sequenced the portion of the ftsZ gene encoding the C-terminal region of the protein for 4 B. bacilliformis isolates, 14 B. clarridgeiae isolates, 14 B. quintana isolates, and 30 B. henselae isolates that were obtained from different geographic regions, hosts, and clinical specimens. B. clarridgeiae and B. quintana sequences were highly conserved, while those of the four B. bacilliformis isolates differed from the type strain at 5 positions. Among B. henselae strains isolated from cats and patients, only two genotypes were detected: Houston and Marseille. Among 80 clinical samples we detected Bartonella spp. in 35 (43.75%) and found the assay to be comparable to that of a combined intergenic-spacer-region- and pap31-based PCR assay. Our results show the usefulness of the portion of the ftsZ gene encoding the C-terminal region for diagnosis of Bartonella infections. More samples should be tested to study its usefulness for epidemiological investigations.

Abstract: ABSTRACT We report the first documented case of endocarditis in a man infected with Bartonella alsatica, which causes bacteremia in healthy wild rabbits. B. alsatica was identified by serology and culture and by PCR of an aortic valve specimen. B. alsatica should be added to the list of zoonotic agents of blood culture-negative endocarditis.

Abstract: Bartonella is a bacterial genus classified in the alpha-Proteobacteria on the basis of 165 rDNA sequence comparison. The highly conserved heat-shock chaperonin protein, GroEL, has proved to be a valuable resolving tool to classify ten Bartonella species. The groEL gene was amplified and sequenced from ten Bartonella isolates: Bartonella alsatica, Bartonella vinsonii subsp. arupensis, Bartonella taylorii, Bartonella tribocorum, Bartonella birtlesii, Bartonella henselae Marseille (URLLY8), B. henselae (90-615), B. henselae (Fizz), B. henselae (CAL-1) and B. henselae (SA-2). Then, phylogenetic relationships were inferred between our isolates and eight other species and subspecies from the comparison of both 16S rDNA and groEL sequences using parsimony, neighbour-joining and maximum-likelihood methods. By using groEL sequences, the first reliable classification of most known Bartonella species and subspecies was established. Four strongly supported subgroups were distinguished: firstly, the two human pathogens B. henselae and Bartonella quintana; secondly, a cluster including four rodent isolates, Bartonella elizabethae, B. tribocorum, Bartonella grahamii and B. taylorii; thirdly, a cluster including the B. vinsonii subspecies (B. vinsonii subsp. vinsonii, arupensis and berkhoffii); and lastly, B. birtlesii and 'Bartonella weissi'. 'Bartonella washoensis', B. alsatica, Bartonella doshiae, Bartonella bacilliformis and Bartonella clarridgeiae did not reliably cluster with any other Bartonella species. In addition, the groEL gene was shown to be useful in subtyping six B. henselae isolates into three variants: Houston, Marseille and Fizz.

Abstract: Fleas (Siphonaptera) are the most clinically important ectoparasites of dogs and cats worldwide. Rising levels of pet ownership, climate change and globalisation are increasing the importance of a detailed understanding of the endemicity and prevalence of flea-borne pathogens. This requires continued surveillance to detect change. This study reports a large-scale survey of pathogens in fleas collected from client-owned cats and dogs in the UK. Recruited veterinary practices were asked to follow a standardised flea inspection protocol on a randomised selection of cats and dogs brought into the practice in April and June 2018. A total of 326 practices participated and 812 cats and 662 dogs were examined. Fleas were collected, identified to species and pooled flea samples from each host were analysed for the presence of pathogens using PCR and sequence analysis. Overall, 28.1% of cats and 14.4% of dogs were flea infested. More than 90% of the fleas on both cats and dogs were cat fleas, Ctenocephalides felis felis. Fleas of the same species from each infested host were pooled. DNA was amplified from 470 of the pooled flea samples using conventional PCR, 66 of which (14% ± 95% CI 3.14%) were positive for at least one pathogen. Fifty-three (11.3% ± 95% CI 2.85%) of the pooled flea DNA samples were positive for Bartonella spp., 35 were from cats and 4 from dogs, the remainder had no host record. Seventeen of the Bartonella spp. samples were found to be Bartonella henselae, 27 were Bartonella clarridgeiae (of two different strains), 4 samples were Bartonella alsatica and one was Bartonella grahamii; 4 samples could not be identified. Fourteen (3% ± 95% CI 1.53%) of the flea DNA samples were found to be positive for Dipylidium caninum, 10 of the D. caninum-infected samples were collected from cats and one from a dog, the other 3 positive flea samples had no host species record. Only 3 flea samples were positive for Mycoplasma haemofelis or Mycoplasma haemocanis; 2 were collected from cats and one had no host species record. Three fleas were positive for both D. caninum and Bartonella spp. One flea was positive for both Bartonella spp. and M. haemofelis or M. haemocanis. This study highlights the need for ongoing flea control, particularly given the relatively high prevalence of Bartonella spp., which is of concern for both animal welfare and human health. The study demonstrates the ongoing need to educate pet owners about the effects of both flea infestation and also the pathogen risks these fleas present.