Is there a place for xenodiagnosis in the clinic?. Issue 11 (November 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Telford, Sam R; Hu, Linden T; Marques, Adriana
• Is Part Of: Expert review of anti-infective therapy. Volume 12:Issue 11(2014)
• Page Start: 1307
• Page End: 1310
• Publication Date: 2014-11
• Subjects: Anti-infective agents -- Research -- Periodicals; 616.90461
• DOI: 10.1586/14787210.2014.966084
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1478-7210

Abstract

<abstract> <title> <x xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p>Whether <italic>Borrelia burgdorferi, </italic> the causative agent of Lyme disease, can persist after antibiotic therapy is an area of ongoing controversy. In animal models, <italic>B. burgdorferi</italic> DNA can be detected in tissues after antibiotic therapy as well as by using the natural tick vector to acquire the organism through feeding (xenodiagnosis). Vector arthropods have been successfully used in xenodiagnosis to describe the etiology of infections such as malaria, typhus and Chagas disease. Our recent safety trial of xenodiagnosis demonstrates that ticks may be successfully fed on patients and may help determine the biological basis for post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome.</p> </abstract>