Detection of a Borrelia miyamotoi sensu lato relapsing-fever group spirochete from Ixodes pacificus in California

J Med Entomol. 2006 Jan;43(1):120-3. doi: 10.1093/jmedent/43.1.120.

Abstract

We investigated whether host-seeking nymphs and adults of the western blacklegged tick, Ixodes pacificus Cooley & Kohls, the primary vector of Lyme disease spirochetes in far-western North America, are infected naturally with relapsing-fever group spirochetes in Mendocino County, California. Relapsing-fever group borreliae were detected in four (1.7%) of 234 nymphal and two (0.7%) of 282 adult host-seeking I. pacificus ticks by polymerase chain reaction and sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA and flagellin genes, respectively, exhibiting 99 and 98.5% sequence homology to Borrelia miyamotoi Fukunaga. Phylogenetic analysis based on these two genes revealed that the borreliae detected in these ticks belong to the relapsing-fever group and that these are closely related to, if not identical with, B. miyamotoi.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Arachnid Vectors / microbiology*
  • Borrelia / classification*
  • Borrelia / genetics*
  • Borrelia / isolation & purification
  • California
  • DNA, Bacterial / chemistry
  • Flagellin / genetics
  • Ixodes / microbiology*
  • Life Cycle Stages / genetics
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Phylogeny
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / genetics
  • Relapsing Fever / microbiology*
  • Relapsing Fever / transmission
  • Sequence Alignment

Substances

  • DNA, Bacterial
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
  • Flagellin

Associated data

  • GENBANK/DQ025521
  • GENBANK/DQ025522