Rickettsia felis: The Complex Journey of an Emergent Human Pathogen

Rickettsia felis is an obligate intracellular bacterium that is different from other officially recognized rickettsial species. It has multiple genes of different origins, an incubation temperature of less than 32 degrees C, and a conjugative plasmid. This Rickettsia is commonly detected in febrile patients in sub-Saharan Africa. R. fells is frequently detected in cat fleas, but recently mosquitoes have been suspected to be able to transmit the bacterium. However, many aspects of the ecology and epidemiology of R. fells are not completely understood and remain to be uncovered. We aim here to give an update of the current knowledge about this fascinating organism.