Inoculation with Bartonella HenselaeFollowed by Feline Herpesvirus 1 Fails to Activate Ocular Toxoplasmosis in Chronically Infected Cats

Infection by Toxoplasma gondiiis very common in cats although most remain disease free. The factors that trigger development of uveitis in some cats infected with T gondiihave not been elucidated, but infection by more than one organism may be contributory. In this study, cats chronically infected with T gondiiwere inoculated with Bartonella henselaefollowed by FHV-1 to test the hypothesis that immune stimulation by multiple infections will reactivate ocular toxoplasmosis. Anterior uveitis and chorioretinitis were not detected in the cats with chronic T gondiiinfection thus allowing rejection of the hypothesis using this experimental design.