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Biomedical subjects

J F Anderson

Publications and source records attributed to J F Anderson.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Serologic analyses of cottontail rabbits for antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was developed to detect antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi in cottontail rabbits captured in Millbrook, N.Y., and New York, N.Y. Five antigenically variable strains of B. burgdorferi were analyzed to determine the variability of serologic test results. In analyses of 79 serum samples, seropositivity ranged from 56% for a strain cultured from kidney tissues of a cottontail rabbit to 68% for a strain isolated from a larva of Ixodes dentatus, a tick that parasitized a cottontail rabbit. There were false-positive results when reference rabbit antisera to B. hermsii and Treponema pallidum were screened against B. burgdorferi. Cross-reactivity with antisera to Leptospira interrogans serovars was less pronounced. Western blot (immunoblot) analyses revealed reactivities of test sera to two or more surface or subsurface proteins of B. burgdorferi with approximate molecular masses of 18, 25 to 27, 34, 36, 41, and 59 kilodaltons. Cottontail rabbits respond immunologically to B. burgdorferi, but the observed variations in serologic test results should not be a limitation in field and laboratory investigations of Lyme borreliosis.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Cross-reactivity of nonspecific treponemal antibody in serologic tests for Lyme disease.

Serum samples obtained from 59 persons who had acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis, periodontitis, syphilis, or Lyme disease were tested against Treponema phagedenis biotype Reiter, Treponema denticola, Treponema vincentii, and Treponema scoliodontum by indirect fluorescent-antibody staining methods. Although there were positive reactions for sera representing each of these study groups and for 20 (13%) of 156 samples collected from the general population (premarital screening for syphilis), titration endpoints were relatively low (less than or equal to 1:256). Serum samples from 18 persons who had gingivitis or periodontitis but no history of Lyme borreliosis were tested by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi. Of these, five (28%) had immunoglobulin M antibody and four (22%) contained immunoglobulin G antibodies to this spirochete. Adsorption with either sorbent commercially prepared from T. phagedenis biotype Reiter or with washed, whole cells of T. phagedenis biotype Reiter reduced cross-reactivity in the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for Lyme borreliosis.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed1990

Bird-feeding ticks transstadially transmit Borrelia burgdorferi that infect Syrian hamsters.

Bird-feeding Ixodes dammini ticks were documented for the first time to successfully molt and transstadially pass Borrelia burgdorferi spirochetes that were indistinguishable by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis from the type B31 strain. Forty-six of 73 blood-engorged larvae and 50 of 66 fully-fed nymphs, removed from wild-caught birds, successfully molted. Borreliae were isolated from 21 of 78 partially- and fully-fed larvae off birds, including six specimens that molted. Spirochete-positive cultures also were obtained from 35 of 60 partially- and fully-fed nymphs that had fed from birds, including 20 nymphs that molted into adult ticks. Transstadially passed borreliae by bird-feeding larval and nymphal I. dammini were infectious to hamsters, leading us to suggest that these ticks are capable of subsequently transmitting infectious spirochetes to mammals, including humans. An isolated of B. burgdorferi, recovered from a bird-feeding larval Ixodes dentatus, was indistinguishable by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis from the B31 strain. This isolate, unlike another from I. dentatus off a cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus), had a protein band with a molecular weight of approximately 31,000 that reacted with murine monoclonal antibodies H3TS and H5332 in western blot analysis. Thus, closely related borreliae are present in both I. dentatus and I. dammini.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Class-specific and polyvalent enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for detection of antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi in equids.

Class-specific and polyvalent ELISA were developed to detect IgM antibody or total immunoglobulins to Borrelia burgdorferi in equine sera. Analyses of 122 serum specimens, collected during 1985 from horses and ponies in tick-infested areas of Connecticut, revealed IgM antibody in 41 (34%) samples; titration end points ranged from 1:160 to 1:2,560. In polyvalent ELISA, 73 (16%) of 454 serum specimens contained IgM and/or IgG antibody. Seropositivity was highest (32%) for blood samples collected during May. Both ELISA procedures had comparable sensitivities.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for Lyme disease: reactivity of subunits of Borrelia burgdorferi.

We prepared fractions of Borrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease, from cultured spirochetes and used them as antigen in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for IgG antibody. Polystyrene plates coated with an extract containing major proteins with apparent molecular masses of 34, 39, 59, and 68 kilodaltons had comparable sensitivity but greater specificity than plates coated with whole cells. Of the 33 serum specimens from individuals with Lyme disease that reacted with whole cells of B. burgdorferi in the class-specific ELISA, 30 (91%) remained positive when this extract was used. Cross-reactivity was minimal with antibody to treponemes. Use of subunit antigens may improve serological diagnosis of Lyme disease.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed1989

Antigenically variable Borrelia burgdorferi isolated from cottontail rabbits and Ixodes dentatus in rural and urban areas.

Spirochetes were isolated from 71 subadult Ixodes dentatus removed from cottontail rabbits captured in Millbrook, N.Y., and in New York, N.Y. Spirochetes were also cultured from kidney tissues of six rabbits. While all isolates reacted with monoclonal antibody H9724, which identifies the spirochetes as borreliae, more than half did not bind with antibody H5332 and even fewer reacted with H3TS, both of which were produced to outer surface protein A of Borrelia burgdorferi. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis protein profiles of three isolates differed from one another and from all previously characterized B. burgdorferi strains from humans, ticks, and wildlife in North America. The 12 periplasmic flagella that originated subterminally from each pointed end of a rabbit Borellia isolate contrasted with the 11 or fewer flagella for B. burgdorferi reported previously from North America. Although DNA homology and restriction endonuclease analysis also revealed differences among a rabbit kidney isolate, an I. dentatus isolate, and B. burgdorferi B31, similarities were sufficient to lead us to conclude that the borreliae in rabbits and I. dentatus are B. burgdorferi. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay titers of sera from humans with diagnosed Lyme disease to rabbit tick B. burgdorferi were often similar to one another and to those recorded for a reference B. burgdorferi strain.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Maternal malignant melanoma with placental metastasis: a case report with literature review.

Histologic detection of micrometastatic melanoma in the placenta led to the clinical diagnosis in the mother. Metastases were present in the intervillous space and in villous stroma. The infant has survived and has no evidence of disease at one year of age. The mother died of metastatic disease 6 months post-partum. Literature review shows that only 25% of infants with placental metastatic melanoma succumb to the disease. In a review series of 16 cases, there are some maternal clinical factors which seem to have some bearing on the likelihood of fetal metastasis and death from disease. Features that are associated with an unfavorable fetal/infant prognosis are: maternal age less than 30 years, primiparity, leg primary site, disease onset greater than 3 years prior to pregnancy, node-1 metastatic status prior to pregnancy, M4 status in third trimester, birth at greater than 36 weeks' gestation, male sex. Extent of penetration of metastases into the villi does not have prognostic significance.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Ecology of Lyme disease.

Borrelia burgdorferi is transmitted from wild animals to humans by the bite of Ixodes dammini. This tick is common in many areas of southern Connecticut where it parasitizes three different host animals during its two-year life cycle. Larval and nymphal ticks have parasitized 31 different species of mammals and 49 species of birds. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) appear to be crucial hosts for adult ticks. All three feeding stages of the tick parasitize humans, though most infections are acquired from feeding nymphs in May through early July. Reservoir hosts for the spirochete include rodents, other mammals, and even birds. White-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) are particularly important reservoirs, and in parts of southern Connecticut where Lyme disease is prevalent in humans, borreliae are universally present during the summer in these mice. Prevalence of infected ticks has ranged from 10-35%. Isolates of B. burgdorferi from humans, rodents, and I. dammini are usually indistinguishable, but strains of B. burgdorferi with different major proteins have been identified.

Ecology↗
PubMed1989

Preventing Lyme disease.

Five species of ixodid ticks that frequently feed on humans, Ixodes dammini, I. scapularis, I. pacificus I. ricinus, and I. persulcatus, are competent vectors of B. burgdorferi. Collectively, these species are distributed over vast areas of North America, Europe, and Asia. Lyme disease is becoming prevalent because of increased human exposure to infected ticks. Chemical and environmental methods of controlling these ticks over large areas will be difficult because none of these species is concentrated in a particular habitat. In relatively small local areas and special habitats such as islands, ticks may be reduced significantly by application of chemicals or by altering the environment. For example, areas surrounding homes may be successfully treated with timely applications of chemicals; reductions in ticks may be achieved by eliminating significant host animals, such as deer. Satisfactory biologic methods of control are presently unavailable. Personal protection efforts taken by the individual, such as using repellents on clothing or skin, wearing clothing that prevents ticks from easily gaining access to skin, and locating and removing attached ticks promptly, may be the most effective measures that can be taken to reduce risk of contracting Lyme disease.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Health and metabolic responses of young calves housed at -30 degrees C to -8 degrees C.

Newborn, male, Holstein calves, were continuously housed for three weeks in calf hutches at 17 degrees C or in a thermal environment which varied rhythmically on a daily basis either between -20 degrees C and -8 degrees C (experiment A) or between -30 degrees C and -18 degrees C (experiment B). Compared to warm-housed calves, cold-housed calves in experiment A had metabolic rates which were significantly higher (p less than 0.001) in a standing position but which were not significantly different (p less than 0.05) in a recumbent position. Recumbent and standing cold-housed calves in experiment B had an increased (p less than 0.05) metabolic rate compared to warm-housed controls. Heat loss was less (p less than 0.05) for recumbent cold-housed calves in experiment B than for standing calves in a thermoneutral environment. Localized subcutaneous hemorrhages of hindlimbs were a consistent necropsy finding among all cold-housed calves. Average daily gains of cold-housed calves were not significantly different from warm-housed controls. Clinical, physiological and pathological findings indicated that cold treatments used in the present study did not cause serious harm to calves. It was concluded that calves housed in properly managed hutches are remarkably cold tolerant.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Thermal insulation of young calves exposed to cold.

Tissue, external and whole animal insulation values were determined for 12 newborn male Holstein calves continuously housed for two weeks in hutches within environmental chambers in which temperature was maintained at a constant 17 degrees C (three calves) or cycled on a daily basis either between -20 degrees and -8 degrees C (three calves) or between -30 degrees and -18 degrees C (six calves). Three of the six calves at the coldest temperature were outfitted with an insulated coat. The insulated coat provided calves a 52% increase in total insulation. Tissue insulation of cold-housed calves increased 37.2% over the first two weeks of life. It was concluded that the capacity for vasoconstriction improved with age. External insulation did not change significantly except during the first week in cold-housed calves without insulated coats. External insulation values were five to eight times those of tissue insulation values for all treatment groups. This indicated that insulation of structures external to the skin (hair, bedding, ground, etc.) provided most of the insulation for calves.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for the detection of class-specific immunoglobulins to Borrelia burgdorferi.

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were developed to detect immunoglobulin M (IgM) and immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease. Of the 135 blood samples obtained during 1985-1986 from persons in Connecticut with erythema migrans or other clinical manifestations of this spirochetosis, 106 (79%) contained IgM antibody. In separate tests for IgG antibody, 106 (83%) of 128 specimens were considered positive. To assess the specificity of these assays, the authors analyzed sera from patients with other spirochetal infections or nonrelated diseases. Heterologous IgM antibody was detected in 32 (42%) of 77 samples, while cross-reactivity occurred in 17 (25%) of 69 sera screened for IgG antibody. Geometric mean titers for homologous reactions were usually twofold or more higher than those of heterologous reactions. Information on IgG antibody is particularly useful for serodiagnosis, but because of the cross-reactivity among Borrelia and Treponema, clinical data and the use of other serologic tests may be needed to separate Lyme disease from other spirochetal infections.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed1988

New Borrelia burgdorferi antigenic variant isolated from Ixodes dammini from upstate New York.

A previously undescribed Borrelia burgdorferi antigenic variant was isolated from each of four Ixodes dammini larvae removed from white-footed mice, Peromyscus leucopus, captured in Millbrook, N.Y. This site is in the northern range of the known distribution of the tick in the northeastern United States. The molecular weights of approximately 32,500 and 35,500 for outer surface A and outer surface B proteins, respectively, were distinctly higher than those for previously characterized isolates from North American ticks, humans, and wild mammals. A prominent low-molecular-weight protein of about 23,500 was also present. All four isolates infected Syrian hamsters and retained their antigenicity after passage through these rodent hosts. Serum samples from patients with Lyme disease tended to have immunoglobulin M, immunoglobulin G, and immunoglobulin antibodies to Connecticut B. burgdorferi 2591 at titers slightly higher than or equal to those recorded for an antigenically different strain of B. burgdorferi from Millbrook, N.Y.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Serologic analyses of Peromyscus leucopus, a rodent reservoir for Borrelia burgdorferi, in northeastern United States.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and indirect fluorescent-antibody test were used to detect antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, in Peromyscus leucopus (white-footed mouse). Of the 661 mice captured in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York during 1980 and 1983 to 1987, 166 (25.1%) had antibodies to B. burgdorferi by ELISA. Comparative analyses of 210 serum specimens, collected in areas where Lyme disease is endemic, revealed a threefold difference in sensitivity between the ELISA (38.1% positive) and the indirect fluorescent-antibody method (12.4%). Although prevalence of seropositive P. leucopus was highest during June, elevated amounts of antibody (1:1,280 to 1:2,560) were detected in mice that harbored spirochetes during all seasons. Being reservoirs for B. burgdorferi, these rodents are suitable for monitoring spirochete infections at foci and should be included in field evaluations of control programs aimed at suppressing Lyme disease.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Ticks and biting insects infected with the etiologic agent of Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi.

Members of 18 species of ticks, mosquitoes, horse flies, and deer flies were collected in southeastern Connecticut and tested by indirect fluorescent-antibody staining methods for Borrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease. An infection rate of 36.2% (116 tested), recorded for immature Ixodes dammini, exceeded positivity values for all other arthropod species. Prevalence of infection for hematophagous insects ranged from 2.9% of 105 Hybomitra lasiophthalma to 14.3% of seven Hybomitra epistates. Infected I. dammini larvae and nymphs coexisted with infected Dermacentor variabilis (American dog tick) immatures on white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus), but unlike I. dammini, none of the 55 adult American dog ticks collected from vegetation harbored B. burgdorferi. Groups of 113 field-collected mosquitoes of Aedes canadensis and 43 Aedes stimulans were placed in cages with uninfected Syrian hamsters. Of these, 11 females of both species contained B. burgdorferi and had fed fully or partially from the hamsters. No spirochetes were isolated from the hamsters, but antibodies were produced in one test animal.

Aedes↗
PubMed1988

Borreliosis in equids in northeastern United States.

During 1982 and 1985, blood samples from 705 equids were examined for antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi. By indirect immunofluorescence staining, IgM and total immunoglobulin (IgM and IgG) antibodies were detected in 37 (5.3%) and 90 (12.8%) serum specimens, respectively. The geometric mean titer for IgM antibody (140.4) was highest during July, whereas total immunoglobulin ranged from 94.1 in October to 338 in May. Eighty-six equids with total immunoglobulin to B burgdorferi lived in areas of Connecticut where the primary tick vector, Ixodes dammini, was present. Of the 86 equids, 9 from Lyme, Connecticut and Westchester County, New York had antibodies to B burgdorferi and developed limb or joint disorders that resulted in single or recurrent episodes of lameness.

Animals↗