Borrelia garinii spirochete was detected for the first time in Ixodes ovatus tick ectoparasitized on stray cat in Taiwan. The genetic identity of this detected spirochete was determined by analyzing the gene sequence amplified by genospecies-specific polymerase chain reaction assays based on the 5S-23S intergenic spacer amplicon (rrf-rrl) and outer surface protein A (ospA) genes of B. burgdorfe...

Lyme borreliosis is the most widespread vector-borne disease in temperate zones of Europe and North America. Although the infection is treatable, the symptoms are often overlooked resulting in infection of the neuronal system. In this work we uncover the underlying molecular mechanism of borrelial translocation across the blood-brain barrier (BBB). We demonstrate that neuroinvasive strain of Bo...

functionally graded aluminium/zirconia metal matrix composite was fabricated using stir casting technique followed by horizontal centrifugal casting process and a hollow cylindrical functionally graded composite (150 x 150 x 16 mm) was obtained with centrifuging speed of 1200 rpm. the microstructural evaluation and hardness test was carried out on the outer and inner surface of the functionally...

To carry out the immunological experiments on the serum of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients, based on a correlation between Borrelia burgdorferi infection and contracting MS autoimmune disease the outer surface protein D (OspD) of the bacterium was expressed and purified. A clone containing the OspD gene in pET11a expression vector under the control of T7 promoter was transformed to the bacteri...

Twenty-eight Borrelia burgdorferi isolates from the Charleston, S.C., area are described. This represents the first report and characterization of the Lyme disease spirochete from that state. The isolates were obtained from December 1994 through December 1995 from the tick Ixodes scapularis, collected from vegetation, and from the rodents Peromyscus gossypinus (cotton mouse), Neotoma floridana ...

Five Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato isolates from Missouri are described. This represents the first report and characterization of such isolates from that state. The isolates were obtained from either Ixodes dentatus or Amblyomma americanum ticks that had been feeding on cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus) from a farm in Bollinger County, Mo., where a human case of Lyme disease had been...

The numbers of host-adapted Borrelia burgdorferi (HAB) organisms in rabbit skin were assessed by real-time PCR over the first 3 weeks of infection. Maximal numbers were found at day 11, while spirochete numbers decreased by more than 30-fold by day 21. The antigenic composition of HAB in skin biopsy samples was determined by use of a procedure termed hydrophobic antigen tissue Triton extraction...

The aim of this study was to improve understanding of several factors related to the ecology and environmental risk of Borrelia infection in northern Florida. Small mammals and host-seeking adult ticks were collected at several sites, and specimens were tested for the presence of Borrelia species, primarily by PCR amplification. Tissues from some vertebrates and ticks were initially cultured in...

Due to local variation in the antigenicity of the agent of Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi), a vaccine derived from any one isolate of this spirochete may fail to protect against the heterogeneous population of organisms that may be present in an enzootic focus. Accordingly, we determined whether antigenically variable spirochetes delivered by naturally infected ticks, collected from a site ...

Lyme borreliosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato bacteria transmitted to humans and domestic animals by the bite of an Ixodes spp. tick (deer tick). Despite improvements in diagnostic tests and public awareness of Lyme disease, the reported cases have increased over the past decade to approximately 30,000 per year. Limitations and failed public acceptance of a hu...