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Thursday, December 24, 2009

Toxoplasma and Bartonella in Pennsylvania Cats

Dubey JP, Bhatia CR, Lappin MR, et al. Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and Bartonella spp. antibodies in cats from Pennsylvania. J Parasitol 2009;95:578-580.

Toxoplasma gondii and Bartonella spp. are zoonotic pathogens that infect cats. Good prevalence studies of these organisms in cats are lacking. The researchers examined blood samples from 210 cats at a humane shelter in Bensalem, Pennsylvania from January to July 2008 for antibodies to these pathogens. Nearly 20% of the cats tested positive for T. gondii, which is lower than previous studies in other geographic areas both in the United States and elsewhere in the world. That may be due to the fact that nearly a quarter of the cats tested were kittens. Seroprevalence increased with the age of the cat. Over 25% of cats tested were seropositive for Bartonella spp. Seventeen cats had antibodies to both organisms, but there was no correlation between T. gondii and Bartonella spp. seropositivity. [MK]
>> PubMed Abstract

Related articles:
DeFeo ML, Dubey JP, Mather TN, et al. Epidemiologic investigation of seroprevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in cats and rodents. Am J Vet Res 2002;63:1714-1717.
>> PubMed Abstract

Lappin MR, Breitschwerdt EB, Brewer M, et al. Prevalence of Bartonella species antibodies and Bartonella species DNA in the blood of cats with and without fever. J Feline Med Surg 2009;11:141-148.
>> PubMed Abstract

More on cat health: Winn Feline Foundation Library
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