Biomaterial Database

Clinical implications of delayed growth of the Lyme borreliosis spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi. 1990

A B MacDonald, and B W Berger, and T G Schwan

Department of Pathology, Southampton Hospital, New York 11968.

Lyme borreliosis, a spirochetal infection caused by Borrelia burgdorferi, may become clinically active after a period of latency in the host. Active cases of Lyme disease may show clinical relapse following antibiotic therapy. The latency and relapse phenomena suggest that the Lyme disease spirochete is capable of survival in the host for prolonged periods of time. We studied 63 patients with erythema migrans, the pathognomonic cutaneous lesion of Lyme borreliosis, and examined in vitro cultures of biopsies from the active edge of the erythematous patch. Sixteen biopsies yielded spirochetes after prolonged incubations of up to 10.5 months, suggesting that Borrelia burgdorferi may be very slow to divide in certain situations. Some patients with Lyme borreliosis may require more than the currently recommended two to three week course of antibiotic therapy to eradicate strains of the spirochete which grow slowly.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D004591	Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel	Electrophoresis in which a polyacrylamide gel is used as the diffusion medium.	Polyacrylamide Gel Electrophoresis,SDS-PAGE,Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-PAGE,Gel Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide,SDS PAGE,Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate PAGE,Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-PAGEs
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D001706	Biopsy	Removal and pathologic examination of specimens from the living body.	Biopsies
D012867	Skin	The outer covering of the body that protects it from the environment. It is composed of the DERMIS and the EPIDERMIS.
D015153	Blotting, Western	Identification of proteins or peptides that have been electrophoretically separated by blot transferring from the electrophoresis gel to strips of nitrocellulose paper, followed by labeling with antibody probes.	Immunoblotting, Western,Western Blotting,Western Immunoblotting,Blot, Western,Immunoblot, Western,Western Blot,Western Immunoblot,Blots, Western,Blottings, Western,Immunoblots, Western,Immunoblottings, Western,Western Blots,Western Blottings,Western Immunoblots,Western Immunoblottings
D015748	Borrelia burgdorferi Group	Gram-negative helical bacteria, in the genus BORRELIA, that are the etiologic agents of LYME DISEASE. The group comprises many specific species including Borrelia afzelii, Borellia garinii, and BORRELIA BURGDORFERI proper. These spirochetes are generally transmitted by several species of ixodid ticks.	Borrelia afzelii,Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato,Borrelia garinii,Borreliella afzelii,Borreliella garinii
D015787	Erythema Chronicum Migrans	A deep type of gyrate erythema that follows a bite by an ixodid tick; it is a stage-1 manifestation of LYME DISEASE. The site of the bite is characterized by a red papule that expands peripherally as a nonscaling, palpable band that clears centrally. This condition is often associated with systemic symptoms such as chills, fever, headache, malaise, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, backache, and stiff neck.	Erythema Migrans of Lyme Disease
D046508	Culture Techniques	Methods of maintaining or growing biological materials in controlled laboratory conditions. These include the cultures of CELLS; TISSUES; organs; or embryo in vitro. Both animal and plant tissues may be cultured by a variety of methods. Cultures may derive from normal or abnormal tissues, and consist of a single cell type or mixed cell types.	Culture Technique,Technique, Culture,Techniques, Culture