Abstract
Kordick DL, Brown TT, Shin K, Breitschwerdt EB (
Human Bartonella infections cause a variety of clinical presentations, whereas cats generally appear to tolerate long-term bacteraemia with these organisms without obvious clinical abnormalities. In this study, 18 specific pathogen-free cats were inoculated with Bartonella henslae- and/or Bartonella clarridgeiae-infected cat blood. The cats were monitored for 454 days. Relapsing bacteraemia was observed, but did not correlate either with changes in protein profiles or differences in antigenic protein recognition. Intradermal skin testing of the cats did not result in a delayed type hypersensitivity reaction to cat scratch disease skin test antigen. At the end of the study, 13 cats were euthanatised and despite persistent infection, clinical signs were minimal and gross necropsy results were unremarkable. Histopathology showed peripheral lymph node hyperplasia (in all 13), splenic follicular hyperplasia (in 9), lymphocytic cholangitis/pericholangitis (in 9), lymphocytic hepatitis (in 6), lymphoplasmacytic myocarditis (in 8), and interstital lymphocytic nepharitis (in 4). Structures suggestive of Bartonella could be seen in some Warthin-Starry stained sections, and Bartonella DNA could be amplified from the liver (from 11) heart (from 8), kidney (from 9), lung (from 2), and brain (from 9). This study showed that B henselae or B clarridgeiae can induce chronic infection in specific-pathogen-free cats and that Bartonella DNA can be detected in blood, brain, lymph node, myocardium, liver and kidney tissues of both blood culture-positive cats and blood culture-negative cats. The detection of some histological changes in these cats suggests a potential aetiological role for Bartonella species in some idiopathic disease of cats.