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Volume 3, Number 3—September 1997
Synopsis

Flea-borne Rickettsioses: Ecologic Considerations

Abdu F. AzadComments to Author , Suzana Radulovic, James A. Higgins, B. H. Noden, and Jill M. Troyer
Author affiliations: University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

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Table 1

Results of PCR/RFLP testing of fleas for typhus group rickettsiae

Species Host/Location (Date) Rickettsia typhi/R. felisa
Ctenocephalides felis Opossum/Corpus Christi,TX(1991) R. felis
C. felis Opossum/Corpus Christi,TX(1991) R. typhi
C. felis Opossum/Los Angeles, CA(1991) R. felis
C. felis Opossum/Los Angeles, CA(1991) R. typhi
Polygenis gwyni Opossum/Statesboro, GA (1994) -/-
P. gwyni Opossum/Statesboro, GA (1996) -/-
Pulex simulans Opossum/Statesboro, GA (1993) -/-
Pulex irritans Dog/Statesboro, GA (1996) R. felis
C. felis Opossum/Nashville, TN (1987) R. felis
C. felis Opossum/Statesboro, GA (1993) R. felis
C. felis Opossum/Statesboro, GA (1994) R. felis
C. felis Opossum/Statesboro, GA (1996) R. felis
C. felis Dog/Statesboro, GA (1996) R. felis
C. felis Bobcat/Statesboro, GA (1994) R. felis

aThe procedure for detecting R. typhi and R. felis in fleas followed described protocols (6,11).

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