Taiwanese researchers made headlines this week when they noted the brown rat - the most common rat in Europe - carries the bacteria, Bartonella rochalimae, which can spread to humans. In humans, the bacteria can cause serious illnesses, from heart disease to spleen infections, and worse.
The discovery was first made when a woman who had recently traveled to Peru got an enlarged spleen. This prompted investigators to look into the matter, leading them to discover that rodents carry several strains of the Bartonella bacteria. Many of these can cause humans to suffer serious health issues. The Bartonella rochalimae (which was among these) had not previously been discovered in rodents.
The Black Death was believed to have spread from rats to humans in the 14th-Century. It led to the death of over 75 million people. Some researchers fear this could be similar.
© C Harris Lynn, 2008
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