Borrelia recurrentis

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Borrelia recurrentis
Borrelia recurrentis CDC.png
Photomicrographic view of a culture specimen showing Borrelia recurrentis bacteria
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Domain: Bacteria
Phylum: Spirochaetes
Order: Spirochaetales
Family: Spirochaetaceae
Genus: Borrelia
Species:
B. recurrentis
Binomial name
Borrelia recurrentis
(Lebert, 1874) Bergey et al., 1925

Borrelia recurrentis is a species of Borrelia , a spirochaete bacterium associated with relapsing fever. [1] [2] B. recurrentis is usually transmitted from person to person by the human body louse. [3] Since the 1800s, the body louse has been known as its only known vector. [4]

B. recurrentis DNA was found in 23% of head lice from patients with louse-borne relapsing fever in Ethiopia. Whether head lice can transmit these bacteria from one person to another remains to be determined. [4]

It is notable for its ability to alter the proteins expressed on its surface, which causes the "relapsing" characteristic of relapsing fever. [5]

Related Research Articles

Louse Order of insects

Louse is the common name for members of the clade Phthiraptera, which contains nearly 5,000 species of wingess parasitic insect. Phthiraptera has variously been recognized as an order, infraorder, or a parvorder, as a result of developments in phylogenetic research.

Crab louse Species of insect

The crab louse or pubic louse is an insect that is an obligate ectoparasite of humans, feeding exclusively on blood. The crab louse usually is found in the person's pubic hair. Although the louse cannot jump, it can also live in other areas of the body that are covered with coarse hair, such as the perianal area, in men practically the entire body, and in children the eyelashes.

Pediculosis Medical condition

Pediculosis is an infestation of lice. The condition can occur in almost any species of warm-blooded animal, including humans. Although pediculosis in humans may properly refer to lice infestation of any part of the body, the term is sometimes used loosely to refer to pediculosis capitis, the infestation of the human head with the specific head louse.

Head louse Insect parasite of humans

The head louse is an obligate ectoparasite of humans.

Trench fever is a moderately serious disease transmitted by body lice. It infected armies in Flanders, France, Poland, Galicia, Italy, Salonika, Macedonia, Mesopotamia, Russia and Egypt in World War I. Three noted sufferers during WWI were the authors J. R. R. Tolkien, A. A. Milne, and C. S. Lewis. From 1915 to 1918 between one-fifth and one-third of all British troops reported ill had trench fever while about one-fifth of ill German and Austrian troops had the disease. The disease persists among the homeless. Outbreaks have been documented, for example, in Seattle and Baltimore in the United States among injection drug users and in Marseille, France, and Burundi.

<i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Species of bacteria

Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto is a bacterial species of the spirochete class in the genus Borrelia, and is one of the causative agents of Lyme disease in humans. Along with a few similar genospecies, some of which also cause Lyme disease, it makes up the species complex of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato. The complex currently comprises 20 accepted and 3 proposed genospecies. B. burgdorferi sensu stricto exists in North America and Eurasia and until 2016 was the only known cause of Lyme disease in North America. Borrelia species are gram-negative.

Jarisch–Herxheimer reaction Medical condition

A Jarisch–Herxheimer reaction is a reaction to endotoxin-like products released by the death of harmful microorganisms within the body during antibiotic treatment. Efficacious antimicrobial therapy results in lysis (destruction) of bacterial cell membranes, and in the consequent release into the bloodstream of bacterial toxins, resulting in a systemic inflammatory response.

Relapsing fever is a vector-borne disease caused by infection with certain bacteria in the genus Borrelia, which is transmitted through the bites of lice or soft-bodied ticks.

<i>Borrelia</i> Genus of bacteria

Borrelia is a genus of bacteria of the spirochete phylum. It causes Lyme disease, also called Lyme borreliosis, a zoonotic, vector-borne disease transmitted primarily by ticks and by lice, depending on the species of bacteria. The genus is named after French biologist Amédée Borrel (1867–1936), who first documented the distinction between a species of Borrelia, B. anserina, and the other known type of spirochete at the time, Treponema pallidum. This bacterium must be viewed using dark-field microscopy, which make the cells appear white against a dark background. Borrelia species are grown in Barbour-Stoenner-Kelly medium. Of 52 known species of Borrelia, 20 are members of the Lyme disease group, 29 belong to the relapsing fever group, and two are members of a genetically distinct third group typically found in reptiles. The Lyme disease group has been proposed to be split based on genetic diversity and moved to their own genus, Borelliella, but this change is not widely accepted. This bacterium uses hard and soft ticks and lice as vectors. Testing for the presence of the bacteria in a human includes two-tiered serological testing, including immunoassays and immunoblotting.

Body louse Subspecies of insect

The body louse is a hematophagic ectoparasite louse that infests humans. It is one of three lice which infest humans, the other two being the head louse, and the crab louse or pubic louse.

Lyme disease microbiology

Lyme disease, or borreliosis, is caused by spirochetal bacteria from the genus Borrelia, which has 52 known species. Three main species are the main causative agents of the disease in humans, while a number of others have been implicated as possibly pathogenic. Borrelia species in the species complex known to cause Lyme disease are collectively called Borrelia burgdorferisensu lato (s.l.) not to be confused with the single species in that complex Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto which is responsible for nearly all cases of Lyme disease in North America.

Bartonella quintana, originally known as Rochalimaea quintana, and "Rickettsia quintana", is a bacterium transmitted by the human body louse that causes trench fever. This bacterial species caused outbreaks of trench fever affecting 1 million soldiers in Europe during World War I.

Head lice infestation Medical condition

Head lice infestation, also known as pediculosis capitis, is the infection of the head hair and scalp by the head louse. Itching from lice bites is common. During a person's first infection, the itch may not develop for up to six weeks. If a person is infected again, symptoms may begin much more quickly. The itch may cause problems with sleeping. Generally, however, it is not a serious condition. While head lice appear to spread some other diseases in Africa, they do not appear to do so in Europe or North America.

<i>Borrelia hermsii</i> Species of bacterium

Borrelia hermsii is a spirochete bacterium that has been implicated as a cause of tick-borne relapsing fever. It is spread by the soft-bodied tick Ornithodoros hermsi.

Pediculosis corporis Medical condition

Pediculosis corporis is a cutaneous condition caused by body lice that lay their eggs in the seams of clothing.

Pediculosis pubis Disease caused by the pubic louse, Pthirus pubis, a parasitic insect notorious for infesting human pubic hair

Pediculosis pubis is an infestation by the pubic louse, Pthirus pubis, a wingless insect which feeds on blood and lays its eggs (nits) on mainly pubic hair. Less commonly, hair near the anus, armpit, beard, eyebrows, moustache, and eyelashes may be involved. It is usually acquired during sex, but can be spread via bedding, clothing and towels, and is more common in crowded conditions where there is close contact between people.

<i>Ornithodoros hermsi</i> Species of tick

Ornithodoros hermsi is a species of soft tick. It can be infected with Borrelia hermsii.

Borrelia parkeri, a species of Borrelia, has been associated with relapsing fever.

<i>Ornithodoros moubata</i> Species of tick

Ornithodoros moubata, commonly known as the African hut tampan or the eyeless tampan, is a species of tick in the family Argasidae. It is an ectoparasite and vector of relapsing fever in humans, and African swine fever in pigs.

Borrelia coriaceae is a species of spirochete bacteria and member of the genus Borrelia. Strains of this species have been isolated from the soft tick Ornithodoros coriaceus and from mule deer.

References

  1. Cutler SJ, Moss J, Fukunaga M, Wright DJ, Fekade D, Warrell D (October 1997). "Borrelia recurrentis characterization and comparison with relapsing-fever, Lyme-associated, and other Borrelia spp". International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology. 47 (4): 958–68. doi: 10.1099/00207713-47-4-958 . PMID   9336893.
  2. Meri T, Cutler SJ, Blom AM, Meri S, Jokiranta TS (July 2006). "Relapsing fever spirochetes Borrelia recurrentis and B. duttonii acquire complement regulators C4b-binding protein and factor H". Infection and Immunity. 74 (7): 4157–63. doi:10.1128/IAI.00007-06. PMC   1489703 . PMID   16790790.
  3. Madigan, Michael T.; Martinko, John M. (2006). Brock biology of microorganisms. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. p. 410. ISBN   0-13-144329-1.
  4. 1 2 Boutellis, A; Mediannikov, O; Bilcha, KD; Ali, J; Campelo, D; Barker, SC; et al. (2013). "Borrelia recurrentis in head lice, Ethiopia". Emerg Infect Dis. 19 (5): 796–798. doi:10.3201/eid1905.121480. PMC   3647509 . PMID   23648147.
  5. Fisher, Bruce; Harvey, Richard P.; Strohl, William A.; Champe, Pamela C. (2007). Lippincott's Illustrated reviews, microbiology . Hagerstwon, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. pp.  166. ISBN   978-0-7817-8215-9.