Flea-borne zoonoses such as plague (Yersinia pestis) and murine typhus (Rickettsia typhi) caused significant numbers of human cases in the past and remain a public health concern. Other flea-borne human pathogens have emerged recently (e.g., Bartonella henselae, Rickettsia felis), and their mechanisms of transmission and impact on human health are not fully understood. Our review focuses on the...

Objectives. The prevalence of Cryptosporidium and the risk factors of zoonotic transmission in Najafabad, Isfahan, Iran dairy farms were examined. Methods. One fecal sample was collected from all calves less than 6 months old in eight dairy farms around Najafabad (Isfahan province, Central Iran) as well as individuals working in these farms and their household members. A two-step nested PCR pro...

BACKGROUND Giardia intestinalis is one of the most common diarrhea-related parasites in humans, where infection ranges from asymptomatic to acute or chronic disease. G. intestinalis consists of eight genetically distinct genotypes or assemblages, designated A-H, and assemblages A and B can infect humans. Giardiasis has been classified as a possible zoonotic disease but the role of animals in hu...

BACKGROUND Micro-organisms transmitted from vertebrate animals - including livestock - to humans account for an estimated 60% of human pathogens. Micro-organisms can be transmitted through inhalation, ingestion, via conjunctiva or physical contact. Close contact with animals is crucial for transmission. The role of intensity and type of contact patterns between livestock and humans for disease ...

The close contact between household pets and people offers favourable conditions for bacterial transmission. In this article, the aetiology, prevalence, transmission, impact on human health and preventative measures are summarized for selected bacterial zoonoses transmissible by household pets. Six zoonoses representing distinct transmission routes were selected arbitrarily based on the availab...

The risks posed to human health by individual animal prion diseases cannot be determined a priori and are difficult to address empirically. The fundamental event in prion disease pathogenesis is thought to be the seeded conversion of normal prion protein to its pathologic isoform. We used a rapid molecular conversion assay (protein misfolding cyclic amplification) to test whether brain homogena...

Molecular diagnostic tools have been used recently in assessing the taxonomy, zoonotic potential, and transmission of Giardia species and giardiasis in humans and animals. The results of these studies have firmly established giardiasis as a zoonotic disease, although host adaptation at the genotype and subtype levels has reduced the likelihood of zoonotic transmission. These studies have also i...