02704nas a2200289   4500008004100000020001400041245007800055210006900133260002400202300001400226490000800240520185900248653001202107653002702119653002302146653001102169653004702180653001102227653001702238653003502255653001102290100002002301700002102321700001302342700001902355856004002374       2003                        eng d  a0077-892300aAn experimental model of human body louse infection with Rickettsia typhi0 aexperimental model of human body louse infection with Rickettsia  aUnited Statesc2003  a617 - 6270 v9903 aMurine (endemic) typhus caused by Rickettsia typhi, one of the most widely distributed arthropod-borne diseases, is transmitted to humans mainly by the oriental rat flea. The human body louse, Pediculus humanus corporis, has been suspected to have a role in the transmission of R. typhi to humans. To evaluate the potential role of Pediculus humanus corporis as a vector of murine typhus, we used R. typhi in an experimental model of human body louse infection previously used with R. prowazekii. A rabbit was made bacteremic by inoculating it with 2 x 10(6) plaque-forming units of R. typhi; it remained bacteremic for at least 59 hours. Two hundred body lice infected by feeding on the bacteremic rabbit were compared to 200 uninfected control lice. Each louse population was fed once a day on the abdomen of a seronegative rabbit. On day 8 post-infection, as a result of disruption of the gut cells and leakage of the blood meal into the hemolymph, four infected lice became bright red and died within four hours. The life span of infected lice was 20 days less than that of the controls. Infected lice did not transmit R. typhi to their progeny (eggs and larvae) as demonstrated by PCR amplification and cell culture. With an immunofluorescence assay, R. typhi was detected in feces from day 7 post-infection, and the organism remained viable in feces for up to 80 days as demonstrated by cell culture. From the 21st day post-infection, the rabbit used to feed the R. typhi-infected lice developed an immunoglobulin response with a titer of 1:50 increasing to 1:200 at the 42nd day post-infection. It showed no clinical signs of infection. The rabbit that was used to feed uninfected lice remained seronegative. Although body lice are not clearly identified vectors of R. typhi, it seems that under certain circumstances they could transmit R. typhi.10aanimals10aDisease Models, Animal10aFeces/microbiology10ahumans10aLice/microbiology/pathogenicity/physiology10aRabbit10areproduction10aRickettsia typhi/pathogenicity10atyphus1 aHouhamdi, Linda1 aFournier, P., E.1 aFang, R.1 aRaoult, Didier  uhttps://cats.myspecies.info/node/6900518nas a2200133   4500008004100000245014900041210006900190260000900259300001400268490000700282100002000289700001900309856005600328       2006                        eng d00aExperimentally infected human body lice (Pediculus humanus humanus) as vectors of Rickettsia rickettsii and Rickettsia conorii in a rabbit model0 aExperimentally infected human body lice Pediculus humanus humanu  c2006  a521 - 5250 v741 aHouhamdi, Linda1 aRaoult, Didier  uhttp://www.phthiraptera.info/Publications/46340.pdf01509nas a2200169   4500008004100000020001400041245004300055210004200098260001700140300001200157490000700169520106300176100002001239700002101259700001901280856004001299       2005                        eng d  a0025-682X00aLice and lice-borne diseases in humans0 aLice and liceborne diseases in humans  aFrancec2005  a13 - 230 v653 aAmong the three lice which parasite the human being, the human body louse, Pediculus humanus humanus, is a vector of infectious diseases. It lives and multiplies in clothes and human infestation is associated with cold weather and a lack of hygiene. Three pathogenic bacteria are transmitted by the body louse: 1) Rickettsia prowazekii, the agent of epidemic typhus of which the most recent outbreak (and the largest since World War II) was observed during the civil war in Burundi; 2) Borrelia recurrentis, the agent of relapsing fever, historically responsible of massive outbreaks in Eurasia and Africa, which prevails currently in Ethiopia and neighboring countries; 3) Bartonella quintana, the agent of trench fever, bacillary angiomatosis, chronic bacteremia, endocarditis, and lymphadenopathy. Body louse infestation, associated with a decline in social and hygienic conditions provoked by civil unrest and economic instability, is reemergent worldwide. Recently, a forth human pathogen, Acinetobacter baumannii, has been associated to the body louse.1 aHouhamdi, Linda1 aParola, Phillipe1 aRaoult, Didier  uhttps://cats.myspecies.info/node/47