The Biology, Ecology, and Management of the Cat Flea

Rust, Michael Κ.; Dryden, Michael W.

doi:10.1146/annurev.ento.42.1.451

Cited by 277 publications

(197 citation statements)

References 93 publications

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“…Perhaps seemingly counterintuitive to our finding, we showed that abundance of hostseeking C. felis was significantly lower in homesteads that reported dog ownership. However, this is likely because dogs are a preferred host for C. felis, 49 thus, presence of this host may reduce the abundance of host-seeking fleas inside huts. However, C. felis is an inefficient vector of Y. pestis and is an unlikely bridging vector from zoonotic hosts to humans because of its infrequent feeding on rodents.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of Risk Factors for Plague in the West Nile Region of Uganda

Eisen

MacMillan

Atiku

et al. 2014

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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Abstract. Plague is an often fatal, primarily flea-borne rodent-associated zoonosis caused by Yersinia pestis. We sought to identify risk factors for plague by comparing villages with and without a history of human plague cases within a model-defined plague focus in the West Nile Region of Uganda. Although rat (Rattus rattus) abundance was similar inside huts within case and control villages, contact rates between rats and humans (as measured by reported rat bites) and host-seeking flea loads were higher in case villages. In addition, compared with persons in control villages, persons in case villages more often reported sleeping on reed or straw mats, storing food in huts where persons sleep, owning dogs and allowing them into huts where persons sleep, storing garbage inside or near huts, and cooking in huts where persons sleep. Compared with persons in case villages, persons in control villages more commonly reported replacing thatch roofing, and growing coffee, tomatoes, onions, and melons in agricultural plots adjacent to their homesteads. Rodent and flea control practices, knowledge of plague, distance to clinics, and most care-seeking practices were similar between persons in case villages and persons in control villages. Our findings reinforce existing plague prevention recommendations and point to potentially advantageous local interventions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of Risk Factors for Plague in the West Nile Region of Uganda

Eisen

MacMillan

Atiku

et al. 2014

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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“…Self-inoculation with flea excrement may result in direct transmission to a flea-infested dog. Dogs and cats are commonly infested with the same flea (Ctenophalides felis) [58] that is known to transmit B. henselae from infected to SPF cats [16]. Both C. felis from cats and dogs and C. canis from dogs were reported to be positive for B. henselae DNA [32].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bartonella henselae IgG antibodies are prevalent in dogs from southeastern USA

et al. 2004

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-In contrast to the large body of literature regarding Bartonella henselae in humans and cats, there is little information about B. henselae as an infectious agent in dogs. Due to the paucity of information regarding the B. henselae serology in dogs, we performed a cross-sectional serosurvey using B. henselae antigen in order to compare the seroprevalence between sick and healthy dogs from the south-eastern USA. Ninety-nine sera were collected from clinically healthy dogs. Three hundred and one sera from sick dogs were submitted to North Carolina State University for serologic screening against a panel of arthropod-transmitted organisms. Serological tests were performed using B. henselae (Bh), Rickettsia rickettsii (Rr), Ehrlichia canis (Ec), Bartonella vinsonii subspecies berkhoffii (Bvb), Babesia canis (Bc) and Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) antigens. Serum B. henselae IgG antibodies were detected in 10.1% of healthy dogs and in 27.2% of sick dogs. The difference in seroprevalence between the two groups was statistically significant. The majority of seroreactive dogs (80%) had low titers of 1:64 or 1:128. In healthy dogs, seroprevalence for Rr was 14.1% and for Bvb was 1%. In sick dogs, Rr seroprevalence was 29.7%, Ec 6.5%, Bvb 4.7%, Bb 1.7% and Bc was 0.85%. Of the sick dogs that were seroreactive to B. henselae antigens, 40.6% were also seroreactive to Rr, 15.0% reactive to Bvb antigens, 14.8% reactive to Ec antigens, 1.8% reactive to Bc antigens and 1.75% reactive to Bb antigens. Sera from dogs experimentally infected with B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii, E. canis or R. rickettsii did not cross react with B. henselae antigens, by IFA testing. This study indicates that B. henselae IgG antibodies are prevalent in healthy and sick dogs living in the south-eastern USA. Nevertheless, further studies are needed to evaluate the epidemiological, clinical and zoonotic relevance of B. henselae infection in dogs.Bartonella henselae / dog / serology / vector-borne diseases

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“…In contrast to the narrow host range of the human body louse (43), fleas and ticks can feed on a broad range of mammals (44). Furthermore, lice have a generation time of less than 1 month (45), cat fleas of less than 3 months (46), whereas ticks can have a lifespan of several years (47).…”

Section: Integration Of Megareplicon Sequences Members Of the Genusmentioning

confidence: 99%

The louse-borne human pathogen Bartonella quintana is a genomic derivative of the zoonotic agent Bartonella henselae

Alsmark

Frank

Karlberg

et al. 2004

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

214

264

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We present the complete genomes of two human pathogens, Bartonella quintana (1,581,384 bp) and Bartonella henselae (1,931,047 bp). The two pathogens maintain several similarities in being transmitted by insect vectors, using mammalian reservoirs, infecting similar cell types (endothelial cells and erythrocytes) and causing vasculoproliferative changes in immunocompromised hosts. A primary difference between the two pathogens is their reservoir ecology. Whereas B. quintana is a specialist, using only the human as a reservoir, B. henselae is more promiscuous and is frequently isolated from both cats and humans. Genome comparison elucidated a high degree of overall similarity with major differences being B. henselae specific genomic islands coding for filamentous hemagglutinin, and evidence of extensive genome reduction in B. quintana, reminiscent of that found in Rickettsia prowazekii. Both genomes are reduced versions of chromosome I from the highly related pathogen Brucella melitensis. Flanked by two rRNA operons is a segment with similarity to genes located on chromosome II of B. melitensis, suggesting that it was acquired by integration of megareplicon DNA in a common ancestor of the two Bartonella species. Comparisons of the vector-host ecology of these organisms suggest that the utilization of host-restricted vectors is associated with accelerated rates of genome degradation and may explain why human pathogens transmitted by specialist vectors are outnumbered by zoonotic agents, which use vectors of broad host ranges.

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The Biology, Ecology, and Management of the Cat Flea

Cited by 277 publications

References 93 publications

Identification of Risk Factors for Plague in the West Nile Region of Uganda

Identification of Risk Factors for Plague in the West Nile Region of Uganda

Bartonella henselae IgG antibodies are prevalent in dogs from southeastern USA

The louse-borne human pathogen Bartonella quintana is a genomic derivative of the zoonotic agent Bartonella henselae

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