LYME DISEASE: STUDY OF THE ETIOLOGICAL AGENT

莱姆病是一种蜱传疾病，最近（1982-1983年）显示， 被一种螺旋体感染 螺旋体是由蜱属传播的 硬蜱 来自流行区的这些蜱中有19%至61%携带 螺旋体 莱姆病是一种全身性疾病，通常始于 特征性皮肤病变，慢性游走性红斑。 如果不治疗， 几周到几个月后，某些患者会出现神经系统或心脏疾病， 异常 在此之后，关节炎的间歇性发作发生在一些 可能成为慢性软骨和骨侵蚀的患者。 莱姆 疾病现在是一个重要的公共卫生问题， 生活在一些地方病流行地区的人 很少有人知道 宿主-寄生虫关系或莱姆病发病机制 以及用于该疾病的血清学诊断的敏感的特异性测试 是必要的。 我们计划1）调查文化条件，以改善 莱姆病螺旋体分离，2）使用实验动物， 测定莱姆病螺旋体的体内抗生素敏感性， 这种疾病的疫苗的可行性和抗体在 莱姆病免疫，3）研究人类吞噬细胞在宿主中的作用 防御莱姆病螺旋体。

Lyme disease is a tick-borne disease recently (1982-1983) shown to be caued by a spirochete. The spirochete is transmitted by ticks of the genus Ixodes. Nineteen to 61% of these ticks from endemic areas carry the spirochete. Lyme disease is a systemic illness that usually begins with a characteristic skin lesion, erythema chronicum migrans. If untreated, weeks to months later certain patients develop neurologic or cardiac abnormalities. After this, intermittent attacks of arthritis occur in some patients which may become chronic with erosion of cartilage and bone. Lyme disease is now an important public health problem with 6 to 10% of people living in some endemic areas experiencing the disease. Little is known of the host-parasite relationship nor the mechanism of pathogenesis in Lyme disease and a sensitive specific test for the serodiagnosis of this disease is needed. We plan to 1) investigate cultural conditions to improve the isolation of Lyme disease spirochetes, 2) use an experimental animal to determine in vivo antibiotic sensitivity of the Lyme disease spirochete, feasibility of a vaccine for this disease and the role of antibodies in immunity to Lyme disease, 3) study the role of human phagocytes in the host defense against the Lyme disease spirochete.