Journal of Clinical Microbiology, November 2001, p. 4145-4148, Vol. 39, No. 11
0095-1137/01/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JCM.39.11.4145-4148.2001
Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Public Health Service, Fort Collins, Colorado 80522
Received 2 April 2001/Returned for modification 29 July 2001/Accepted 20 August 2001
Quantitative real-time PCR was used to assay spirochetes in feeding ticks. Spirochetes in tick midguts increased sixfold, from 998 per tick before attachment to 5,884 at 48 h of attachment. Spirochetes in tick salivary glands increased >17-fold, from 1.2 per salivary gland pair before feeding to 20.8 at 72 h postattachment. The period of the most rapid increase in the number of spirochetes in the salivary glands occurred from 48 to 60 h postattachment; this time period coincides with the maximal increase in transmission risk during nymphal tick feeding.
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