Abstract
Bartonella spp. are increasingly implicated in association with a spectrum of zoonotic infectious diseases. One hundred sanitary workers in La Rioja, Spain, completed a questionnaire and provided blood specimens for Bartonella spp. serology and Bartonella Alpha-Proteobacteria growth medium (BAPGM) enrichment blood culture/PCR. Six immunofluorescence assays (IFA) were performed and aseptically obtained blood specimens were inoculated into liquid BAPGM and subcultured onto blood agar plates. Bartonella DNA was amplified using conventional and real-time PCR assays. The Bartonella spp., strain, or genotype was determined by DNA sequencing. Bartonella seroreactivity was documented in 83.1% and bloodstream infection in 21.6% of participants. Bartonella henselae, B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii genotypes I and III, and B. quintana were identified. IFA seroreactivity and PCR positivity were not statistically associated with self-reported symptoms. Our results suggest that exposure to and non-clinical infection with Bartonella spp. may occur more often than previously suspected in the La Rioja region.
Highlights
The genus Bartonella comprises fastidious Gram-negative, slow growing and facultative intracellular bacteria belonging to the Alpha-2 subgroup of the class Proteobacteria, Order Rhizobiales
Our results suggest that exposure to and non-clinical infection with Bartonella spp. may occur more often than previously suspected in the La Rioja region
DNA was not PCR amplified from any blood or Bartonella alpha-Proteobacteria growth medium (BAPGM) enrichment blood culture using the same diagnostic platform used in this study [19,20]
Summary
The genus Bartonella comprises fastidious Gram-negative, slow growing and facultative intracellular bacteria belonging to the Alpha-2 subgroup of the class Proteobacteria, Order Rhizobiales These microorganisms are most often transmitted to humans through animal bites or scratches (cats, dogs and other animals), or by scratch inoculation of infected flea and body louse feces [1]. A subset of CSD patients develop severe or systemic disease manifestations, including endocarditis, osteomyelitis, granulomatous hepatitis and hepatosplenic abscess [8,9,10,11,12] Apart from these ‘classical’ species, at least 15 Bartonella spp. have been associated with human diseases In addition to microbiological testing, the potential relationship of Bartonella spp. antibodies or blood stream infection (as assessed by DNA amplification and sequencing) with minor or nonspecific, self-reported symptoms, such as fatigue or insomnia was examined
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