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Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, January 2007, p. 90-93, Vol. 14, No. 1
1071-412X/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/CVI.00266-06
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Borrelia burgdorferi Spirochetes That Harbor Only a Portion of the lp28-1 Plasmid Elicit Antibody Responses Detectable with the C6 Test for Lyme Disease{triangledown}

Monica E. Embers,1 Gary P. Wormser,2 Ira Schwartz,3 Dale S. Martin,1 and Mario T. Philipp1*

Tulane National Primate Research Center, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, Covington, Louisiana,1 Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine,2 Department of Microbiology & Immunology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York3

Received 21 July 2006/ Returned for modification 5 September 2006/ Accepted 6 November 2006

Detection of antibody to C6, a peptide that reproduces the sequence of the sixth invariable region within the central domain of the VlsE protein of Borrelia burgdorferi, is used currently for the serologic diagnosis of Lyme disease in humans. B. burgdorferi isolates taken from infected humans can be categorized into specific genetic subtypes (designated RST1, -2, and -3) by restriction fragment length polymorphisms in the 16S to 23S rRNA spacer sequence. Many of these, usually categorized as RST2, retain only segments of the linear plasmid lp28-1, which encodes VlsE. The VlsE genetic region is retained, but altered expression of this molecule could affect diagnosis by the C6 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Serum samples from patients infected with each of the three genotypes and from mice infected with three RST2 isolates were tested with the C6 ELISA. Such isolates elicited marked C6 responses in infected mice. The sensitivity of C6 antibody detection in patients infected with RST2 spirochetes was statistically indistinguishable from detection of RST1 and RST3 infections. These findings demonstrate that diagnosis by C6 ELISA remains effective for infection with all B. burgdorferi genotypes, including those with incomplete lp28-1 plasmids.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Division of Bacteriology and Parasitology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, 18703 Three Rivers Road, Covington, LA 70433. Phone: (985) 871-6221. Fax: (985) 871-6390. E-mail: Philipp{at}tpc.tulane.edu.

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 15 November 2006.

Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, January 2007, p. 90-93, Vol. 14, No. 1
1071-412X/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/CVI.00266-06
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Ledue, T. B., Collins, M. F., Young, J., Schriefer, M. E. (2008). Evaluation of the Recombinant VlsE-Based Liaison Chemiluminescence Immunoassay for Detection of Borrelia burgdorferi and Diagnosis of Lyme Disease. CVI 15: 1796-1804 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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