Background: Tick-transmitted Borrelia fall into 2 heterogeneous bacterial complexes comprised of multiple species, the relapsing fever (RF) group and the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato group, which are the causative agents of Lyme borreliosis (LB), the most common tickborne disease in the Northern Hemisphere. Geographic expansion of LB in the United States and discovery of emerging Borrelia pathogens underscores the importance of surveillance for disease-causing Borrelia. Methods: De-identified clinical specimens, submitted by providers throughout the United States, for patients suspected of LB, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, or babesiosis were screened using a Borrelia genus-level TaqMan polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Borrelia species and sequence types (STs) were characterized by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) utilizing next-generation sequencing. Results: Among 7292 specimens tested, 5 Borrelia species were identified: 2 causing LB, B. burgdorferi (n = 25) and B. mayonii (n = 9), and 3 RF borreliae, B. hermsii (n = 1), B. miyamotoi (n = 8), and Candidatus B. johnsonii (n = 1), a species previously detected only in the bat tick, Carios kelleyi. ST diversity was greatest for B. burgdorferi-positive specimens, with new STs identified primarily among synovial fluids. Conclusions: These results demonstrate that broad PCR screening followed by MLST is a powerful surveillance tool for uncovering the spectrum of disease-causing Borrelia species, understanding their geographic distribution, and investigating the correlation between B. burgdorferi STs and joint involvement. Detection of Candidatus B. johnsonii in a patient with suspected tickborne disease suggests this species may be a previously undetected cause of illness in humans exposed to bat ticks.
Background: Tick-transmitted Borrelia fall into 2 heterogeneous bacterial complexes comprised of multiple species, the relapsing fever (RF) group and the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato group, which are the causative agents of Lyme borreliosis (LB), the most common tickborne disease in the Northern Hemisphere. Geographic expansion of LB in the United States and discovery of emerging Borrelia pathogens underscores the importance of surveillance for disease-causing Borrelia. Methods: De-identified clinical specimens, submitted by providers throughout the United States, for patients suspected of LB, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, or babesiosis were screened using a Borrelia genus-level TaqMan polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Borrelia species and sequence types (STs) were characterized by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) utilizing next-generation sequencing. Results: Among 7292 specimens tested, 5 Borrelia species were identified: 2 causing LB, B. burgdorferi (n = 25) and B. mayonii (n = 9), and 3 RF borreliae, B. hermsii (n = 1), B. miyamotoi (n = 8), and Candidatus B. johnsonii (n = 1), a species previously detected only in the bat tick, Carios kelleyi. ST diversity was greatest for B. burgdorferi-positive specimens, with new STs identified primarily among synovial fluids. Conclusions: These results demonstrate that broad PCR screening followed by MLST is a powerful surveillance tool for uncovering the spectrum of disease-causing Borrelia species, understanding their geographic distribution, and investigating the correlation between B. burgdorferi STs and joint involvement. Detection of Candidatus B. johnsonii in a patient with suspected tickborne disease suggests this species may be a previously undetected cause of illness in humans exposed to bat ticks.
Authors: Philip J Molloy; Sam R Telford; Hanumara Ram Chowdri; Timothy J Lepore; Joseph L Gugliotta; Karen E Weeks; Mary Ellen Hewins; Heidi K Goethert; Victor P Berardi Journal: Ann Intern Med Date: 2015-07-21 Impact factor: 25.391
Authors: Sam R Telford; Heidi K Goethert; Philip J Molloy; Victor P Berardi; Hanumara Ram Chowdri; Joseph L Gugliotta; Timothy J Lepore Journal: Clin Lab Med Date: 2015-09-18 Impact factor: 1.935
Authors: Gabriele Margos; Anne G Gatewood; David M Aanensen; Klára Hanincová; Darya Terekhova; Stephanie A Vollmer; Muriel Cornet; Joseph Piesman; Michael Donaghy; Antra Bormane; Merrilee A Hurn; Edward J Feil; Durland Fish; Sherwood Casjens; Gary P Wormser; Ira Schwartz; Klaus Kurtenbach Journal: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A Date: 2008-06-23 Impact factor: 11.205
Authors: Alexander E Platonov; Ludmila S Karan; Nadezhda M Kolyasnikova; Natalya A Makhneva; Marina G Toporkova; Victor V Maleev; Durland Fish; Peter J Krause Journal: Emerg Infect Dis Date: 2011-10 Impact factor: 6.883
Authors: Johnnie B Hahm; John W Breneman; Jing Liu; Svetlana Rabkina; Weiming Zheng; Shuxia Zhou; Roger P Walker; Ravi Kaul Journal: J Clin Microbiol Date: 2020-04-23 Impact factor: 5.948
Authors: Christina M Parise; Nicole E Breuner; Andrias Hojgaard; Lynn M Osikowicz; Adam J Replogle; Rebecca J Eisen; Lars Eisen Journal: J Med Entomol Date: 2020-05-04 Impact factor: 2.278
Authors: Alexander R Kneubehl; Aparna Krishnavajhala; Sebastián Muñoz Leal; Adam J Replogle; Luke C Kingry; Sergio E Bermúdez; Marcelo B Labruna; Job E Lopez Journal: BMC Genomics Date: 2022-05-31 Impact factor: 4.547
Authors: Alexandra N Cumbie; Erin L Heller; Zachary J Bement; Anna Phan; Eric L Walters; Wayne L Hynes; Holly D Gaff Journal: Ticks Tick Borne Dis Date: 2021-01-12 Impact factor: 3.744
Authors: Shiva Kumar Goud Gadila; Gorazd Rosoklija; Andrew J Dwork; Brian A Fallon; Monica E Embers Journal: Front Neurol Date: 2021-05-10 Impact factor: 4.003