Bartonellaceae

Bartonella spp. is an arthropod-vectorized bacterial genus responsible for a wide array of vector-borne diseases. Although potentially lethal, Bartonella spp. has remained for years out of scope of clinicians. While challenged by the fastidious nature of Bartonella spp., the development of molecular tools has allowed identifying an increasing number of fully or partially characterized new Bartonella species, contributing to the knowledge of its epidemiology and the further understanding of its pathogenicity. The present chapter summarizes the most relevant approaches to type Bartonella spp.