Wednesday, June 28, 2000
The University Daily Kansan
Section A·Page 3
Tick-borne parasite threatens cats in Lawrence area
By K.S. Businger writer@kansan.com Special to the Kansan
A tick-borne disease deadly to domestic cats has moved into the Lawrence area. Cytauxzoonosis, nicknamed Cytaux (promised sixtos), can kill a cat in a few days.
nounced si-xou, can ruff it or just a few days.
"I almost always fatal," said H. D. Lewis
of Lewis Veterinary Clinic, 3101 W. 6th St.
Lewis has seen five cases this spring—the first cases he's positively identified in 31
years of practice in Lawrence.
Another Lawrence veterinarian, Marguerite Ermeling of Gentle Care Animal Hospital, 6th and Kasold streets, has seen three cases this year. She said people usually brought their cats to the vet when they're in the final stage of the disease and there's little a vet can do to help. Ermeling said cat owners should look for symptoms that include lethargy, difficulty breathing, not eating and unusual behavior.
The cats most at risk are those that go outdoors, especially in rural areas. Lewis said cases have been reported from the Tonganoxie and Perry-Lecompton areas. Most of his cases have come from the Clinton Dam area.
Ermeling has had patients from as far away as Eudora.
Domestic cats are an accidental host, Lewis said. The parasite, a one-celled protozoan, prefers bobcats which are plentiful in the area.
Cytaux can live in bobcats without killing them, said Ken Frazier, veterinary pathologist with the University of
for domestic cats.
It's a different story
Because the disease is new to cats, they haven't developed immunies for it yet. Once
inside a cat, Frazier said, the parasites attack white blood cells that protect the body from invaders. They also attack red blood cells, where they feed and replicate.
The new parasite cells fill the red blood cell to the point of bursting. When the cell bursts, a multitude of new parasites are released into the bloodstream where they find their own red blood cells to feed on and replicate in. And the cycle continues.
The parasites destroy red blood cells too quickly for the cat's body to replace them. The multiplying parasites also release toxins that cause further damage The cat's spleen, liver, lymph nodes and lungs are affected, and death occurs within a few days.
The tick carrier in this area is thought to be the common American Dog Tick, or Dermacentor variabilis. This tick is also a known carrier of Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, a disease that doesn't harm cats, but can be serious for both dogs and people.
Tick activity begins in the spring, peaks in early summer, and declines toward the fall. This year, because of a warmer winter than usual, it could be an especially bad year for ticks.
The best way to keep cats safe, Frazier said, is to check it for ticks and to use tick prevention products.
He said to use only products recommended
for cats because tick
preventives
designed for dogs
can be too strong
for cats and
can actu-
a l l y
h a r m
them.
It's best to remove ticks as quickly as possible. Newly-attached ticks are easier to remove, and less likely to spread any diseases they may be carrying.
And adult female ticks could drop off and crawl away to lay thousands of eggs inside home.
The best way to remove a tick is to use
tweezers and grab it by the head area and pull steadily, being careful not to twist, until it comes out.
Owners should not squeeze tick bodies between their fingers when removing ticks from their cats. That can release any diseases they may be carrying onto the fingers. And it can squirt disease from the tick into the host. Nor should owners use hot matches or petroleum jelly to remove ticks from their
cats. Distressing the tick may make it collapse, move ears, and
cats. Dissect it release more saliva and possibly disease.
A welt may appear where the tick has been pulled off. It should be cleaned with disinfectant. Usually, the welt disappears with time but it may leave a bald patch. Owners should wash their hands thoroughly after removing ticks from their cats.
The best way to kill a removed tick is by dropping it in a jar of alcohol. Flushing them down the toilet does not kill them.
Ermeling said research into Cytaux is ongoing and a promising treatment that includes transfusions and medication is in the works.
—Edited by Jim O'Malley
Hiring laws of physics redefined by department's female professors
By Jim O'Malley editor.kansan.com Kansan co-editor
The department of physics and astronomy at the University of Kansas is one of only 17 physics departments in the United States with at least four female faculty members.
In a study of the status of women in physics published this month, the American Institute of Physics reported that, as of 1998, only 17 doctor-granting physics departments in the United States had four or more female faculty members.
Nationwide, as of 1998, only 8 percent of physics faculty positions were held by women. The KU department has five women, about 17 percent of the 29 faculty members listed on the department's Web site.
Many of the universities on the list have bigger physics departments than the University of Kansas, said Adrian Melott, professor of physics and astronomy.
"I was the pioneer," she said. "It was not fun being the only one. But it's very different now."
Barbara Anthony-Twarog, professor of physics and astronomy, was the first woman in the department when she arrived at the University in 1982.
and couples.
She attributed the University's success in hiring female physicists to luck and aggressive willingness starting eight years ago to hire women
Two of the women in the department are married to other faculty members. Anthony-Twarog said the University had been really willing to accommodate the needs of couples. In the physical sciences, this required a real commitment by the University because the costs of starting up a lab are so high, she said.
And it's probably not a coincidence that Sally Frost Mason, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, is a woman and a scientist, Anthony-Twarog said.
She said women in physics were scarce because of the culture of the profession and general social attitudes about sex roles. It goes back to how boys and girls are treated at early ages. And any profession that requires a big commitment of time from people in their late 20s and early 30s can find it hard to attract women who want to start families, Anthony-Twarog said.
Donna Tucker, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, said the department was open to hiring women, but that it was not conducting a concerted campaign to do so. But hiring women had a cascade effect.
"Once you get a few women in a department,it's easier for more women to join it," she said.
Yet women remained especially under-represented in physics, she said, partly because it required a lot of math.
"I was the pioneer. It was not fun being the only one. But it's very different now."
Barbara Anthony-Twarog
Professor of physics and astronomy
"Women are often not encouraged to take math courses, and physics has dealt with a lot of mechanical things." she said.
Linda Olafsen, assistant professor of physics, said she thought the University was gender-blind in hiring faculty. But the presence of women in the department may make it a more attractive place for new faculty members.
"In a lot of departments I interviewed with I would have been the first woman," Olafsen said. "It's hard going into a department where there are no other women."
Hume Feldman, assistant professor of physics, said the department had not made a concerted effort to recruit women, but that its success wasn't entirely accidental.
"I don't know of any male chauvinist pigs here," he said. "But I've seen them in other physics departments."
Edited by Phil Cauthon
The common American Dog Tick carries a disease that is deadly to domestic cats.Local veterinarians have diagnosed Cytauxzoonosis in several cases this spring. Contributed art.
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