This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Bunikis, J. Articles by Bergstrom, S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Bunikis, J. Articles by Bergstrom, S.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, Feb 1996, 364-368, Vol 34, No. 2
Copyright © 1996 by the American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Molecular polymorphism of the lyme disease agent Borrelia garinii in northern Europe is influenced by a novel enzootic Borrelia focus in the North Atlantic

J Bunikis, B Olsen, V Fingerle, J Bonnedahl, B Wilske and S Bergstrom
Department of Microbiology, Umea University, Sweden.

Lyme disease Borrelia species are distributed in temperate areas of North America and Eurasia. To elucidate the distribution of borreliae in subarctic regions, strains isolated from Ixodes ricinus and Ixodes uriae ticks found on islands in the northern Atlantic and Baltic Sea were molecularly characterized. All isolates were verified as Borrelia garinii by 16S rRNA gene analysis and immunoblotting with monoclonal antibodies specific for the outer surface proteins A and C. Three ribotypes (RTs) of B. garinii were delineated. I. ricinus complex- associated RT1 was phenotypically most heterogeneous. Two newly identified ribotypes were shared by different tick species and conformed to two established OspA serotypes. RT2 was restricted to the islands in the northern Baltic Sea, whereas RT3 was recovered also from ticks found in the North Atlantic. In conclusion, molecular polymorphism of the studied borrelia isolates suggests a complex enzootic potential of B. garinii in northern Europe and implies a novel, seabird tick I. uriae-associated enzootic focus of Lyme disease borreliae in the North Atlantic.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Staszewski, V, McCoy, K.D, Boulinier, T (2008). Variable exposure and immunological response to Lyme disease Borrelia among North Atlantic seabird species. Proc R Soc B 275: 2101-2109 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Pinne, M., Ostberg, Y., Comstedt, P., Bergstrom, S. (2004). Molecular analysis of the channel-forming protein P13 and its paralogue family 48 from different Lyme disease Borrelia species. Microbiology 150: 549-559 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Ornstein, K., Berglund, J., Nilsson, I., Norrby, R., Bergström, S. (2001). Characterization of Lyme Borreliosis Isolates from Patients with Erythema Migrans and Neuroborreliosis in Southern Sweden. J. Clin. Microbiol. 39: 1294-1298 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Gylfe, A., Olsen, B., Strasevicius, D., Marti Ras, N., Weihe, P., Noppa, L., Östberg, Y., Baranton, G., Bergström, S. (1999). Isolation of Lyme Disease Borrelia from Puffins (Fratercula arctica) and Seabird Ticks (Ixodes uriae) on the Faeroe Islands. J. Clin. Microbiol. 37: 890-896 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Matuschka, F.-R., Klug, B., Schinkel, T. W., Spielman, A., Richter, D. (1998). Diversity of European Lyme Disease Spirochetes at the Southern Margin of Their Range. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 64: 1980-1982 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Bunikis, J., Luke, C. J., Bunikiene, E., Bergström, S., Barbour, A. G. (1998). A Surface-Exposed Region of a Novel Outer Membrane Protein (P66) of Borrelia spp. Is Variable in Size and Sequence. J. Bacteriol. 180: 1618-1623 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Wang, G., van Dam, A. P., Spanjaard, L., Dankert, J. (1998). Molecular Typing of Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato by Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA Fingerprinting Analysis. J. Clin. Microbiol. 36: 768-776 [Abstract] [Full Text]