Presence of Rickettsia felis in the cat flea from southwestern Europe

Francisco J Márquez; Miguel A Muniain; Jesús M Pérez; Jerónimo Pachón

Presence of Rickettsia felis in the cat flea from southwestern Europe

Emerg Infect Dis. 2002 Jan;8(1):89-91.

Authors

Francisco J Márquez¹, Miguel A Muniain, Jesús M Pérez, Jerónimo Pachón

Affiliation

¹ Departamento de Biología Animal, Biología Vegetal y Ecología, Universidad de Jaén, Paraje Las Lagunillas s/n, 23071 Jaén, Spain. jmarquez@ujaen.es

PMID: 11749758

Abstract

Rickettsia felis, formerly called ELB agent, was identified by using molecular biology techniques in the cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis felis) from southwestern Spain. For the first time this flea-transmitted rickettsia has been detected within its vector in Eurasia.

MeSH terms

Animals
Cat Diseases / parasitology
Cats
Dog Diseases / parasitology
Dogs
Ectoparasitic Infestations / parasitology
Ectoparasitic Infestations / veterinary
Female
Insect Vectors / microbiology*
Male
Microscopy, Electron / veterinary
Polymerase Chain Reaction / veterinary
Rickettsia / genetics
Rickettsia / isolation & purification*
Rickettsia Infections / transmission*
Siphonaptera / microbiology*
Spain