Ralph Lillie demonstrated that the cause of psittacosis was a rickettsia-like organism instead of a virus

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In 1930, Ralph Lillie demonstrated that the cause of psittacosis was a rickettsia-like organism (later placed in the genus Chlamydia) instead of a virus.

The research of his colleague Charles Armstrong on the disease resulted in governmental regulation of the importation of psittacine birds.

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Source: University of Chicago Library
Credit: Photo: Microscopic image of Gimenez stain of tick hemolymph cells infected with Rickettsia rickettsii, the causative agent of Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Courtesy: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.