Feline Fleas Carry Bacteria Linked To Human Disease In South Texas, Texas A&M Study Finds
New university findings highlight potential implications for cats, one health, and veterinary practice.
Texas A&M researchers have identified the murine typhus pathogen in fleas found in the Rio Grande Valley, highlighting the importance of flea prevention for both pets and people.
As human cases of flea-borne murine typhus continue to occur in South Texas, researchers at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) are working to better understand the role cats and their fleas may play in the disease’s transmission cycle.
In a recent study , researchers detected DNA from Rickettsia typhi — the bacterium that causes flea-borne murine typhus — in cat fleas ( Ctenocephalides felis ) collected from domestic cats in the Rio Grande Valley, a region that consistently reports some of the highest numbers of human cases of murine typhus in Texas.
The findings provide new insight into the pathogens carried by cat fleas and demonstrate how closely animal, human, and environmental health are linked.
Flea-borne murine typhus is a bacterial disease that can infect humans when flea feces containing R.
typhi enter the body through a bite site or mucous membrane and can typically be treated with antibiotics.
Its incidence has steadily increased in Texas over the past decade, particularly in South Texas — with more than 6,700 cases being reported in the region between 2008 and 2023, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
“The last time flea-borne typhus was rampant, rats, and rat fleas were the main reservoir and vector,” said Dr.
Sujata Balasubramanian , an associate research scientist in the VMBS and first author of the study.
“Now, there is a layer of cat fleas contributing to this uptick.” Despite the Rio Grande Valley consistently reporting some of the state’s highest numbers of flea-borne typhus cases, relatively little is known about the prevalence of R.
typhi among cats and cat fleas in the region.
The report adds to ongoing university-led research relevant to veterinary medicine, animal health, and clinical decision-making.
Source university website: Texas A&M VMBS
https://vetmed.tamu.edu/news/press-releases/cat-fleas-murine-typhus-south-texas/
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