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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, May 2005, p. 2194-2200, Vol. 43, No. 5
0095-1137/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.43.5.2194-2200.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Comparison of Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato Strains Isolated from Specimens Obtained Simultaneously from Two Different Sites of Infection in Individual Patients

Eva Ruzic-Sabljic,1* Maja Arnez,2 Mateja Logar,2 Vera Maraspin,2 Stanka Lotric-Furlan,2 Joze Cimperman,2 and Franc Strle2

Institute of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, Zaloska 4, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia,1 Department of Infectious Diseases, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Japljeva 2, 1525 Ljubljana, Slovenia2

Received 17 September 2004/ Returned for modification 21 November 2004/ Accepted 15 January 2005

The aim of the present study was to analyze and compare Borrelia strains isolated from two different specimens obtained simultaneously from individual patients with Lyme borreliosis. Fifty such patients and 50 corresponding pairs of Borrelia isolates (100 low-propagated strains) were subjected to genotypic and phenotypic analysis, including pulsed-field gel electrophoresis for species identification and plasmid profile determination and protein profile electrophoresis for the assessment of the presence and molecular masses of separated proteins. The strains were isolated from two distinct skin lesions (12 patients), skin and blood (28 patients), skin and cerebrospinal fluid (8 patients), and blood and cerebrospinal fluid (2 patients). Out of 100 isolates, 63 were typed as B. afzelii and 37 as B. garinii. From each individual specimen only a single Borrelia species was cultured. Comparison of 50 Borrelia strain pairs isolated from two different specimens of an individual patient revealed that 12/50 (24%) patients were simultaneously infected with two different Borrelia strains; in 3/50 (6%) patients strains differed at the species level, in 4 out of the remaining 47 (9%) patients a strain difference in plasmid profile was established, while 5 out of the remaining 43 (11%) patient strain pairs differed in regard to the protein profiles of the two concurrently isolated strains. The results of the present study indicate that human patients with Lyme borreliosis may simultaneously harbor different B. burgdorferi sensu lato strains.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Institute of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, Zaloska 4, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia. Phone: 386 1 543 7434. Fax: 386 1 543 7401. E-mail: eva.ruzic-sabljic{at}mf.uni-lj.si.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, May 2005, p. 2194-2200, Vol. 43, No. 5
0095-1137/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.43.5.2194-2200.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Cerar, T., Ogrinc, K., Cimperman, J., Lotric-Furlan, S., Strle, F., Ruzic-Sabljic, E. (2008). Validation of Cultivation and PCR Methods for Diagnosis of Lyme Neuroborreliosis. J. Clin. Microbiol. 46: 3375-3379 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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