Chemotherapy of haemobartonellosis in squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus)

Splenectomised Saimiri sciureus squirrel monkeys are being used increasingl y as an experimental host for human malarial studies, notably for the asses sment of candidate vaccines against Plasmodium falciparum blood-stage infec tion. Recently, we have reported that colony-reared S. sciureus monkeys are asymptomatic carriers of Haemobartonella sp. and that patent Haemobartonel la infection, activated following splenectomy, may interfere with the cours e of P. falciparum parasitaemia in these animals. For several years, splene ctomised S. sciureus monkeys were routinely submitted to oxytetracycline th erapy before their use in malarial studies in order to prevent a possible s pontaneous Haemobartonella infection. However, we report here that such ant ibiotic therapy is often ineffective and that neoarsphenamine chemotherapy may be considered as an alternative to cure both latent and patent haemobar tonellosis in S. sciureus monkeys.