Treponema pallidum is a spirochaete bacterium with subspecies that cause the diseases syphilis, bejel, and yaws and is transmitted only amongst humans. It is a helically coiled microorganism usually 6–15 µm long and 0.1–0.2 µm wide. The treponemes have a cytoplasmic and an outer membrane. Using light microscopy, treponemes are visible only by using dark field illumination.
A chancre is a painless genital ulcer most commonly formed during the primary stage of syphilis. This infectious lesion forms approximately 21 days after the initial exposure to Treponema pallidum, the gram-negative spirochaete bacterium yielding syphilis. Chancres transmit the sexually transmissible disease of syphilis through direct physical contact. These ulcers usually form on or around the anus, mouth, penis and vagina. Chancres may diminish between four and eight weeks without the application of medication.
Yaws is a tropical infection of the skin, bones and joints caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum pertenue. The disease begins with a round, hard swelling of the skin, 2 to 5 centimeters in diameter. The center may break open and form an ulcer. This initial skin lesion typically heals after three to six months. After weeks to years, joints and bones may become painful, fatigue may develop, and new skin lesions may appear. The skin of the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet may become thick and break open. The bones may become misshapen. After five years or more large areas of skin may die, leaving a scar.
The rapid plasma reagin test is a type of rapid diagnostic test that looks for non-specific antibodies in the blood of the patient that may indicate a syphilis infection. It is one of several nontreponemal tests for syphilis. The term reagin means that this test does not look for antibodies against the bacterium itself, Treponema pallidum, but rather for antibodies against substances released by cells when they are damaged by T. pallidum. Traditionally, syphilis serologic testing has been performed using a nontreponemal test (NTT) such as the RPR or VDRL test, with positive results then confirmed using a specific treponemal test (TT) such as TPPA or FTA-ABS. This algorithm is currently endorsed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition to screening for syphilis, a titer can be used to track the progress of the disease over time and its response to therapy. The traditional algorithm using a NTT followed by a TT remains the standard in many parts of the world.
The Venereal Disease Research Laboratory test (VDRL) is a blood test for syphilis that was developed by the eponymous lab. The VDRL test is used to screen for syphilis, whereas other, more specific tests are used to diagnose the disease.
Treponema is a genus of spiral-shaped bacteria. The major treponeme species of human pathogens is Treponema pallidum, whose subspecies are responsible for diseases such as syphilis, bejel, and yaws. Treponema carateum is the cause of pinta. Treponema paraluiscuniculi is associated with syphilis in rabbits.
Bejel, or endemic syphilis, is a chronic skin and tissue disease caused by infection by the endemicum subspecies of the spirochete Treponema pallidum. Bejel is one of the "endemic trepanematoses", a group that also includes yaws and pinta. Typically, endemic trepanematoses begin with localized lesions on the skin or mucous membranes. Pinta is limited to affecting the skin, whereas bejel and yaws are considered to be invasive because they can also cause disease in bone and other internal tissues.
Neurosyphilis refers to infection of the central nervous system in a patient with syphilis and can occur at any stage. The majority of neurosyphilis cases have been reported in HIV-infected patients. Meningitis is the most common neurological presentation in early syphilis. Tertiary syphilis symptoms are exclusively neurosyphilis, though neurosyphilis may occur at any stage of infection.
The fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption (FTA-ABS) test is a diagnostic test for syphilis. Using antibodies specific for the Treponema pallidum species, such tests would be assumed to be more specific than non-treponemal testing such as VDRL, but have been shown repeatedly to be sensitive but not specific for the diagnosis of neurosyphilis in CSF. In addition, FTA-ABS turns positive earlier and remains positive longer than VDRL. Other treponemes, such as T. pertenue, may also produce a positive FTA-ABS. The ABS suffix refers particularly to a processing step used to remove nonspecific antispirochetal antibodies present in normal serum.
Condylomata lata or condyloma latum, is a cutaneous condition characterized by wart-like lesions on the genitals. They are generally symptoms of the secondary phase of syphilis, caused by the spirochete, Treponema pallidum.
Erich Hoffmann was a German dermatologist who was a native of Witzmitz, Pomerania.
Treponema denticola is a Gram-negative, obligate anaerobic, motile and highly proteolytic spirochete bacterium. It dwells in a complex and diverse microbial community within the oral cavity and is highly specialized to survive in this environment. T. denticola is associated with the incidence and severity of human periodontal disease. Having elevated T. denticola levels in the mouth is considered one of the main etiological agents of periodontitis. T. denticola is related to the syphilis-causing obligate human pathogen, Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum. It has also been isolated from women with bacterial vaginosis.
Treponematosis is a term used to individually describe any of the diseases caused by four members of the bacterial genus Treponema. The four diseases are collectively referred to as treponematoses:
George M. Weinstock is an American geneticist and microbiologist on the faculty of The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, where he is a professor and the associate director for microbial genomics. Before joining The Jackson Laboratory, he taught at Washington University in St. Louis and served as associate director of The Genome Institute. Previously, Dr. Weinstock was Co-Director of the Human Genome Sequencing Center (HGSC) at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and Professor of Molecular and Human Genetics there.[1] He received his B.S. degree from the University of Michigan in 1970 and his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1977. He has spent most of his career taking genomic approaches to study fundamental biological processes.
The Treponema pallidum particle agglutination assay is an indirect agglutination assay used for detection and titration of antibodies against the causative agent of syphilis, Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum.
Meningeal syphilis is a chronic form of syphilis infection that affects the central nervous system. Treponema pallidum, which is a spirochate bacterium, is the main cause of syphilis, which spreads drastically throughout the body and can infect all the systems of the body if not treated appropriately. The bacterium is the main cause of the onset of meningeal syphilis and other treponemal diseases, and it consists of a cytoplasmic and outer membrane that can cause a diverse array of diseases in the central nervous system and brain.
Spiral bacteria, bacteria of spiral (helical) shape, form the third major morphological category of prokaryotes along with the rod-shaped bacilli and round cocci. Spiral bacteria can be subclassified by the number of twists per cell, cell thickness, cell flexibility, and motility. The two types of spiral cells are spirillum and spirochete, with spirillum being rigid with external flagella, and spirochetes being flexible with internal flagella.
