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Transmission of Lyme disease spirochetes (Borrelia burgdorferi)

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Abstract

The field and laboratory evidence incriminating nymphalIxodes dammini as the main vectors ofBorrelia burgdorferi is substantial. Furthermore, other members of theIxodes (Ixodes) ricinus ‘complex’, includingI. ricinus, I. persulcatus, I. pacificus, andI. scapularis, are competent vectors of the Lyme disease spirochete. Although ticks in other genera are also naturally infected withB. burgdorferi, experimental evidence suggests thatAmblyomma andDermacentor ticks are inefficient vectors of these spirochetes. Current research on the kinetics ofB. burgdorferi growth within ticks demonstrates that Lyme disease spirochetes are dramatically influenced by physiological events during the tick's life-cycle.

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  1. Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 35294, Birmingham, AL, USA

    Joseph Piesman

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Piesman, J. Transmission of Lyme disease spirochetes (Borrelia burgdorferi). Exp Appl Acarol 7, 71–80 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01200454

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