Education
In this very first episode of Infested, we covered unique aspects of flea biology such as solenophagy, high strength legs and jumping capabilities through resilin protein, the benefits of having a laterally compressed body, as well as speciation through genal and pronotal combs. We covered the flea life cycle starting from the egg through to adult emergence including how pupae can survive dormant for years and will rapidly emerge with new host signs. One of the diseases that we discussed was plague, specifically Bubonic plague. Bubonic plague is caused by the transmission of Yersinia pestis bacteria into a vertebrate host through an infected flea bite. The bacteria are regurgitated into the host as the flea tries to take a blood meal while the bacteria forms a thick blockage in its upper digestive tract. We discussed some of the symptoms of plague as well as the historical implications of plague as it has consistently shaped history. Plague is still around today, including endemic levels in the Southwestern United States in enzootic cycles with small mammals like prairie dogs and squirrels. The second disease we dove into was murine typhus also known as flea-borne typhus. Murine typhus is caused by Rickettsia typhii and has many symptoms to other diseases which can make it easy to misdiagnose. We highlighted the current epidemic of murine typhus in California as well as how specific groups are targeted with blame for the epidemic. We talked about vector-borne disease can perpetuate inequality and societal discrimination: a theme that is central to this podcast! Below is our source material for further reading and exploration! We’ve broken it up into books, peer-reviewed journal articles, and media sources for easy searching. Thank you for listening! Want to stay in the loop with us on social media? Instagram: @infestedpodcast Twitter: @infestedpodcast // Lindsay’s Twitter: @Baxter.Lindsay Email: Infestedpodcast@gmail.com This podcast is produced and edited by Lindsay Baxter and Bailey Willett. Their views and opinions are theirs and do not reflect the institution for which they are employed. Books Gottfried, R. S. 1983. The black death. Natural and human disaster in medieval europe. The Free Press, New York, N.Y. Peer Reviewed Sources Achtman, M., Zurth, K., Morelli, G., Torrea, G., Guiyoule, A., & Carniel, E. (1999). Yersinia pestis, the cause of plague, is a recently emerged clone of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 96(24), 14043–14048. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.96.24.14043 Azad, A. F. (1990). Epidemiology of Murine Typhus. Annual Review of Entomology, 35(1), 553–570. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.en.35.010190.003005 Basra, G., Berman, M. A., & Blanton, L. S. (2012). Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness. Case Reports in Medicine, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/134601 Burroughs, A. L. (1947). Sylvatic plague studies. The vector efficiency of nine species of fleas compared with Xenopsylla cheopis. Epidemiology & Infection, 45(3), 371–396. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022172400014042 Chain, P. S. G., Carniel, E., Larimer, F. W., Lamerdin, J., Stoutland, P. O., Regala, W. M., … Garcia, E. (2004). Insights into the evolution of Yersinia pestis through whole-genome comparison with Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 101(38), 13826–13831. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0404012101 Civen, R., & Ngo, V. (2008). Murine Typhus: An Unrecognized Suburban Vectorborne Disease. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 46(6), 913–918. https://doi.org/10.1086/527443 Galimand, M., Guiyoule, A., Gerbaud, G., Rasoamanana, B., Chanteau, S., Carniel, E., & Courvalin, P. (1997). Multidrug Resistance in Yersinia pestis Mediated by a Transferable Plasmid. New England Journal of Medicine, 337(10), 677–681. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJM199709043371004 Gage, K. L., & Kosoy, M. Y. (2005). NATURAL HISTORY OF PLAGUE: Perspectives from More than a Century of Research. Annual Review of Entomology, 50(1), 505–528. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ento.50.071803.130337 Hardy, A. (1988). Urban famine or urban crisis? Typhus in the Victorian city. Medical History, 32(04), 401–425. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0025727300048523 Peniche Lara, G., Dzul-Rosado, K. R., Zavala Velázquez, J. E., & Zavala-Castro, J. (n.d.). Murine Typhus. Colombia Médica : CM, 43(2), 175–180. Perry and Fetherston - 1997 - Yersinia pestis--etiologic agent of plague..pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://cmr.asm.org/content/cmr/10/1/35.full.pdf Perry, R. D., & Fetherston, J. D. (1997). Yersinia pestis--etiologic agent of plague. Clinical Microbiology Reviews, 10(1), 35–66. https://doi.org/10.1128/CMR.10.1.35 Randremanana, R., Andrianaivoarimanana, V., Nikolay, B., Ramasindrazana, B., Paireau, J., Bosch, Q. A. ten, … Rajerison, M. (2019). Epidemiological characteristics of an urban plague epidemic in Madagascar, August–November, 2017: an outbreak report. The Lancet Infectious Diseases, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(18)30730-8 Reeves, W. K., Murray, K. O., Meyer, T. E., Bull, L. M., Pascua, R. F., Holmes, K. C., & Loftis, A. D. (2008). Serological evidence of typhus group rickettsia in a homeless population in Houston, Texas. Journal of Vector Ecology, 33(1), 205–207. https://doi.org/10.3376/1081-1710(2008)33[205:SEOTGR]2.0.CO;2 Ritzmann, I. (1998). [The Black Death as a cause of the massacres of Jews: a myth of medical history?]. Medizin, Gesellschaft, Und Geschichte: Jahrbuch Des Instituts Fur Geschichte Der Medizin Der Robert Bosch Stiftung, 17, 101–130. Schriefer, M. E., Sacci, J. B., Taylor, J. P., Higgins, J. A., & Azad, A. F. (1994). Murine Typhus: Updated Roles of Multiple Urban Components and a Second Typhuslike Rickettsia. Journal of Medical Entomology, 31(5), 681–685. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmedent/31.5.681 Typhus reaches “epidemic levels” in parts of Los Angeles. (n.d.). Retrieved February 21, 2019, from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/typhus-reaches-epidemic-levels-parts-los-angeles-area-n917271 Walker, D. H., & Fishbein, D. B. (1991). Epidemiology of rickettsial diseases. European Journal of Epidemiology, 7(3), 237–245. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00145672 Whiteford, S. F., Taylor, J. P., & Dumler, J. S. (2001). Clinical, Laboratory, and Epidemiologic Features of Murine Typhus in 97 Texas Children. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 155(3), 396–400. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.155.3.396 Popular Media Sources CNN, J. H. (n.d.). Flea-borne typhus spreads across LA area. Retrieved March 26, 2019, from CNN website: https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/08/health/typhus-epidemic-los-angeles-bn/index.html Department of Public Health - Acute Communicable Disease Control. (n.d.). Retrieved March 26, 2019, from http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/acd/vectortyphus.htm Filip, I. (2014, April 11). Avoiding the Black Plague Today. Retrieved April 3, 2019, from The Atlantic website: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/04/avoiding-black-plague-today/360475/ Plague | Plague | CDC. (2018, November 27). Retrieved April 3, 2019, from https://www.cdc.gov/plague/index.html Outbreak of “medieval” typhus in Los Angeles spreads from homeless communities. (2019, February 4). [MovingImage]. Retrieved February 21, 2019, from http://video.foxnews.com/v/5998442627001/ Jones, J. (2012, February 15). Brush with the Black Death: how artists painted through the plague. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2012/feb/15/brush-black-death-artists-plague