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At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMed2000

Bartonella henselae infection in British Columbia: evidence for an endemic disease among humans.

Human bartonellosis in North America is mainly associated with Bartonella henselae, and the availability of laboratory diagnostic tools has significantly heightened awareness of the spectrum of human disease that is caused by this bacterium. We detail herein examples of illness in a pediatric population which serve to confirm that B. henselae-associated disease exists in British Columbia. Seroprevalence studies among asymptomatic adults and among children with symptomatic respiratory illness of other causation demonstrated that 36.8% and 18.5% of sera, respectively, had IFA-IgG titres > or = 1:256. IFA-IgG titres did not vary significantly whether B. henselae ATCC 49793 or a local wild-type B. henselae isolate were used as substrate. An assessment of IgM response was consistent with the proposal that endemic seroprevalence is a function of past rather than recent exposure. Both clinical and serological studies are concordant in providing evidence that B. henselae is endemic in British Columbia.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Epidemiological studies on Bartonella quintana infections among homeless people in Tokyo, Japan.

In an epidemiological investigation of trench fever in Japan, we compared the seroprevalence of Bartonella quintana in homeless people and in the general population. In homeless rescue outreach programs held in Tokyo from May 2001 to March 2003, 151 blood samples were taken from non-hospitalized homeless people. The prevalence of IgM and IgG antibodies against B. quintana in these people was compared with that in 200 healthy blood donors using a commercially available indirect fluorescent antibody test. Although IgG titers of > or = 1:128 were found in 57% (86/151) of homeless people and 51% (101/200) of blood donors, high titers of > or = to 1:1,024 were encountered only in homeless people (11%, 16/151). Attempts to isolate B. quintana from the blood of homeless people were unsuccessful, but polymerase chain reaction based detection, using Bartonella genus specific primers, demonstrated the presence of B. quintana DNA in the blood of 10 homeless people. Our data suggest that urban trench fever is endemic among the Japanese homeless population.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Characterization of a 17-kilodalton antigen of Bartonella henselae reactive with sera from patients with cat scratch disease.

A library of Bartonella (Rochalimaea) henselae DNA was constructed in the cloning vector lambda ZAPII and screened for expression of antigenic proteins by using a pool of sera from patients who had been diagnosed with cat scratch disease (CSD) and had antibodies to Bartonella spp., as determined by indirect fluorescent-antibody (IFA) assay. Ten immunoreactive phages were subcloned as recombinant plasmids by in vivo excision. All 10 recombinants expressed a protein of approximately 17 kDa when they were examined by immunoblot with the pool of human sera. Restriction endonuclease digestion of each recombinant plasmid indicated seven profiles, suggesting that cloning bias was not the reason for repeated isolation of clones expressing the 17-kDa antigen. The gene coding for the 17-kDa antigen was sequenced and shown to code for an open reading frame of 148 amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 16,893 Da. The amino terminus of the deduced amino acid sequence was hydrophobic in nature and similar in size and composition to signal peptides found in gram-negative bacteria. The remainder of the deduced amino acid sequence was more hydrophilic and may represent surface-exposed epitopes. Further subcloning of the 17-kDa antigen as a biotinylated fusion protein in the expression vector PinPoint Xa-2 resulted in a 30-kDa protein that was highly reactive on immunoblots with individual serum samples from patients with CSD. The agreement between reactivity with the 30-kDa fusion protein on immunoblot analysis and the results obtained by IFA assay was 92% for IFA-positive sera and 88% for IFA-negative sera. The recombinant-expressed 17-kDa protein should be of value as an antigen for serologic diagnosis of CSD and Bartonella infections and warrants further study in attempts to develop a subunit vaccine to prevent long-term Bartonella infection in cats and the potential for further spread of these organisms to humans.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1998

Characterization of human immunoglobulin (Ig) isotype and IgG subclass response to Bartonella henselae infection.

Serologic parameters of cat scratch disease (CSD) were evaluated by Western blot analysis. Sera from patients with serologically confirmed CSD antigen were screened for immunoglobulin (Ig) isotype-specific as well as IgG subclass-specific reactivity against Bartonella henselae whole-cell antigen. Bartonella-negative control sera were used to determine baseline antibody activity. Heterogeneous B. henselae-specific IgG reactivity with numerous protein bands, ranging from >150 to <17 kDa, was observed. Though individual banding patterns were variable, one approximately 83-kDa B. henselae protein (Bh83) was immunoreactive with all CSD sera tested, suggesting it is a conserved antigen during infection. Bh83 was not recognized by reference human antisera against Rickettsia rickettsii, Chlamydia group positive, Treponema pallidum, Orientia tsutsugamushi, Fransciscella tularensis, Ehrlichia chaffeensis, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, and Escherichia coli, although other cross-reactive proteins were evident. Significantly, CSD sera failed to recognize the 83-kDa protein when tested against Bartonella quintana antigen, though sera from B. quintana-infected patients did react to Bh83. This cross-reactivity suggests epitope conservation during infection with B. henselae or B. quintana. Western blot analysis further revealed similar banding patterns when B. henselae was reacted against the Ig isotypes IgG and IgG1 and both secretory and alpha chains of IgA. Neither IgM nor IgE reacted significantly to Bartonella antigen by our Western blot analysis. Dissection of the antibody response at the IgG subclass level indicated that prominent antigen recognition was limited to IgG1. These observations provide insight into induced immunity during CSD and provide evidence for conserved epitope expression during infection with B. henselae or B. quintana.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed2003

Bartonella vinsonii subspecies berkhoffi as a possible cause of anterior uveitis and choroiditis in a dog.

A 2-year old, neutered, female spaniel mixed breed was referred to the North Carolina State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital for evaluation of bilateral anterior uveitis. The dog was febrile and, in addition to anterior uveitis, multifocal hyporeflective lesions were present in the tapetal fundus of both eyes. The antibody titer for Bartonella vinsonii subspecies berkhoffi was positive (1 : 512). Aqueous paracentesis was performed for PCR in an attempt to detect B. vinsonii in the eye but was unsuccessful. The ocular manifestations of Bartonella infection in humans are currently expanding as more sensitive serologic and PCR techniques are being developed to identify Bartonella spp. In addition to optic neuritis and neuroretinitis, retinochoroidal lesions are one of the most common manifestations of B. henselae infection, and are frequently accompanied by vitreous or anterior segment inflammation. Diagnosis of a Bartonella infection in humans can be made on serology alone, in conjunction with ocular examination findings. The ultimate proof of B. vinsonii (berkhoffi) as a direct cause of ocular disease would be detection of the infectious agent in the eye. However, it is unknown at this time whether Bartonella causes ocular disease primarily, secondarily via an autoimmune reaction, or both. Due to the difficulties associated with culture of Bartonella spp. and the limitations of PCR, serology is currently the most useful tool for screening dogs for possible Bartonella spp. infection. In the case presented here, even though the PCR was negative, the clinical signs of anterior uveitis and choroiditis might reasonably be associated with B. vinsonii (berkhoffi) seroreactivity, which was repeatable on three separate occasions. Clinical improvement was also accompanied by a post-treatment decrease in B. vinsonii (berkhoffi) seroreactivity, potentially supporting resolution of Bartonella infection in this dog. This is the first reported case of a possible association between uveitis, choroiditis and Bartonella infection in the dog, without clinical manifestations of other organ or tissue involvement. Future studies based on PCR analysis of intraocular fluids may clarify the involvement of B. vinsonii (berkhoffi) in dogs with intraocular inflammatory disease. Furthermore, performing fluorescein angiography in dogs with elevated Bartonella titers may also prove useful in the identification and characterization of lesions.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Pseudoinfectious mononucleosis: a presentation of Bartonella henselae infection.

Six children presented during one year with clinical features of infectious mononucleosis, but with laboratory findings of leucocytosis with neutrophilia, increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and hypergammaglobulinaemia. Serology for Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, adenovirus, and Toxoplasma gondii was negative, while anti-Bartonella henselae IgM with high IgG titre (>/=1/1024) was present in all. All children had contact with kittens. No specific treatment was administered and all recovered.

Bartonella henselae↗
PubMed1999

[Two cases of suspected Bartonella henselae infection from a dog].

A 55-year-old male was admitted to our hospital because of fever and left submaxillary, right axillary, and left inguinal lymphadenopathy. A presumptive diagnosis of rickettsiosis was made and treatment with oral doxycycline was started. Lymphadenopathy was partialy resolved after antibiotics treatment. Ablation of the left inguinal node was done and histopathological examination showed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Lymphadenopathy was resolved by chemotherapy. The second patient, a 40-year-old male, developed a tender submandibular node. Excisional biopsy of the node was performed to eliminate lymphoma. Histopathological examination revealed granulomatous lymphadenitis with follicular hyperplasia. The patients had no history of cat contact, but owned a dog. Diagnosis of both cases was confirmed by the detection of IgG antibodies to Bartonella henselae with an enzyme immunoassay. Our findings suggest that dogs are implicated in B. henselae infection and can serve as a reservoir of the organism as well as cats. In the abscence of other bacterial and especially after exposure to dogs, B. henselae should be included as possible cause of lymphadenopathy.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Detection of Bartonella species from ticks, mites and small mammals in Korea.

We investigated the prevalence of Bartonella infections in ticks, mites and small mammals (rodents, insectivores and weasels) collected during 2001 through 2004, from various military installations and training sites in Korea, using PCR and sequence analysis of 16S rRNA, 23S rRNA and groEL heat shock protein genes. The prevalence of Bartonella spp. was 5.2% (n = 1,305 sample pools) in ticks, 19.1% (n = 21) in mesostigmatid mites and 13.7% (n = 424 individuals) in small mammals. The prevalence within the family Ixodidae was, 4.4% (n = 1,173) in Haemaphysalis longicornis (scrub tick), 2.7% (n = 74) in H. flava, 5.0% (n = 20) in Ixodes nipponensis, 11.1% (n = 9) in I. turdus, 33.3% (n = 3) in I. persulcatus and 42.3% (n = 26) in Ixodes spp. ticks. In rodents, the prevalence rate was, 6.7% (n = 373) in Apodemus agrarius (striped field mouse) and 11.1% (n = 9) in Eothenomys regulus (Korean red-backed vole) and in an insectivore,Crocidura lasiura, 12.1% (n = 33). Neither of the two weasels were positive for Bartonella spp. Phylogenetic analysis based on amino acid sequence of a portion of the groEL gene amplified from one A. agrarius spleen was identical to B. elizabethae species. We demonstrated the presence of Bartonella DNA in H. longicornis, H. flava and I. nipponensis ticks, indicating that these ticks should be added to the growing list of potential tick vectors and warrants further detailed investigations to disclose their possible roles in Bartonella infection cycles.

Animals↗