Chlamydial infections in animals
Chlamydophila felis : Introduction
Feline chlamydiosis caused by strains of Chlamydophila felis is associated with pneumonia and conjunctivitis in cats.
C. felis was first isolated from cats affected by pneumonia by Baker in
1944. The disease is highly debilitating and contagious and is probably
world-wide, cases having been reported from the USA (Cello,
1967), Canada (Shewen et al.,
1978), Australia (Studdert et al.,
1981) and the UK (Gethings et al.,
1987).
C. felis infection is frequently referred to as feline
pneumonitis. This is something of a misnomer as pneumonitis is usually transitory,
whereas conjunctivitis and rhinitis are more characteristically associated with C.
felis infection (Schachter, 1989). Strains causing feline chlamydiosis,
included within the former Chlamydia psittaci taxon, have been reclassified as C. felis
in the new taxomony (Everett et al.,
1999).
For a recent review, see Ramsey
(2000).
NEXT: C. felis: Epidemiology
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