A gold-plated test for Lyme disease.Current tests for Lyme disease Lyme disease, a nonfatal bacterial infection that causes symptoms ranging from fever and headache to a painful swelling of the joints. The first American case of Lyme's characteristic rash was documented in 1970 and the disease was first identified in a cluster at detect the antibodies produced when a person's immune system immune system Cells, cell products, organs, and structures of the body involved in the detection and destruction of foreign invaders, such as bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells. Immunity is based on the system's ability to launch a defense against such invaders. responds to Borrelia burgdorferi Borrelia burg·dor·fe·ri n. A spirochete causing Lyme disease in humans. Borrelia burgdorferi The spirochete agent of Lyme disease, which contains several outer membrane proteins and a highly immunogenic flagellar , the tick-borne bacteria that cause the disease. But because some people are slow to make such antibodies, the test doesn't always provide an accurate diagnosis. If left untreated, Lyme disease can cause chronic arthritic symptoms. Scientists have now developed a prototype test that directly spots bits of B. burgdorferi. Working at the Rocky Mountain Laboratories of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in Hamilton, Mont., the group created gold-tagged antibodies that home in on two of the bacteria's surface proteins. The gold enables scientists to image bacteria-binding antibodies in the blood with an electron microscope electron microscope: see microscope. , thereby clinching the microbes' presence, the researchers report in the June JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY The Journal of Clinical Microbiology is an academic journal published by the American Society for Microbiology. The title is commonly abbreviated JCM and the ISSN is 0095-1137 for the print version, and 1098-660X for the electronic version. . David W. Dorward, who directed the work, notes that most medical laboratories lack the electron microscopes needed to conduct the new test. However, he says, the gold-labeled antibodies could be adapted for use in a routine diagnostic test. |
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