Bites from Amblyomma americanum, a hard tick, have been associated with a
Lyme disease-like illness in the southeastern and south-central United
States. Present in 2% of ticks collected in four states were uncultivable
spirochetes. Through use of the polymerase chain reaction, partial
sequences of the flagellin and 16s rRNA genes of microorganisms from
Texas and New Jersey were obtained. The sequences showed that the
spirochete was a Borrelia sp. but distinct from other known members of
this genus, including B. burgdorferi, the agent of Lyme disease.
Species-specific differences in the sequences of the flagellin protein,
the flagellin gene and the 16s rRNA gene between the new Borrelia species
and previously known species provide compositions and methods for assay
for determining the presence of this new spirochete, or for providing
evidence of past or present infection by this spirochete in animal
reservoirs and humans.
