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Volume 16, Number 3—March 2010
Perspective

Bartonella spp. Transmission by Ticks Not Established

Sam R. Telford and Gary P. WormserComments to Author 
Author affiliations: Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, North Grafton, Massachussetts, USA (S.R. Telford III); New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York, USA (G.P. Wormser)

Main Article

Table 1

Reasons that Bartonella species might be transmitted by ticks

• Certain other arthropods can transmit Bartonella species.
• Seropositivity to B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii in dogs correlates with tick exposure and with seropositivity to other tick-borne pathogens. Seropositivity to B. henselae in feral cats in the United Kingdom correlated with seropositivity to Borrelia burgdorferi.
Bartonella spp. DNA is present in ticks.
• Cases of B. henselae infection with preceding tick bite have been reported.
• Transstadial transmission of B. henselae in Ixodes ricinus ticks and transmission by I. ricinus ticks during a blood meal using an artificial feeding system have been shown.
• Case control study of cat-scratch disease found a significant association with having had a tick on the body, but this association lost statistical significance on a bivariate analysis controlling for kitten exposure.
Bartonella spp. are commonly present in Peromyscus leucopus mice, a major host for deer ticks and a main reservoir of Borrelia burgdorferi.

Main Article

Page created: December 14, 2010
Page updated: December 14, 2010
Page reviewed: December 14, 2010
The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by any of the groups named above.
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