Lyme disease in horses is caused by the bacterium *Borrelia burgdorferi*, which is transmitted through tick bites. Horses infected with Lyme disease may exhibit a range of clinical signs, including lameness, joint swelling, and behavioral changes. Diagnosis can be challenging due to the nonspecific nature of these symptoms and the variability in serological testing. Treatment typically involves the use of antibiotics, and management strategies may include tick control measures to prevent infection. This page collects peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnostic methods, and treatment options for Lyme disease in equine populations.
Kašpárková N, Bártová E, Žákovská A, Budíková M, Sedlák K.Lyme disease, caused by some strains of bacterial spirochetes Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (Bbsl), affects humans but also domestic animals including horses. The primary pathogens in horses in Europe are B. afzelii, B. garinii and B. burgdorferi sensu stricto. To our knowledge, there are no data available on the seropositivity of B. burgdorferi s.l. in horses from the Czech Republic. In this country, horses are mainly used for sport, breeding, and recreational riding in areas where vectors of B. burgdorferi s.l. are present, which is why they are frequently at risk of infection. The aim of ...
Gehlen H, Inerle K, Bartel A, Stöckle SD, Ulrich S, Briese B, Straubinger RK.There are limited data on Lyme borreliosis (LB), a tick-borne disease caused by the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato complex, in horses. Seropositivity is not necessarily associated with clinical disease. Data on seropositivity against Borrelia burgdorferi and Anaplasma phagocytophilum in German horses are sparse. Therefore, serum samples from horses (n = 123) suspected of having Lyme borreliosis and clinically healthy horses (n = 113) from the same stables were tested for specific antibodies against Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato and Anaplasma phagocytophilum. The samples were screened for an...
Oliver A, Conrado FO, Nolen-Walston R.Equine granulocytic anaplasmosis is a clinically significant and common disease of equids that has a broader prevalence than was once thought. The most common clinical signs include high fever and edema, with mild to mderate thrombocytopenia and lymphopenia typically noted on complete blood count. Subclinical cases are reported and many are self-limiting. Rare clinical presentations include neurologic disease, vasculitis, dysphagia, rhabdomyolysis, or bicavitary effusion. Most cases resolve rapidly with appropriate antimicrobial intervention.
Doff SC, Wenderlein J, Wiesinger A, Hiereth S, Ulrich S, Straubinger RK.Lyme borreliosis is a vector-borne disease in humans and animals caused by bacteria from the sensu lato complex (sl). The possible transmission of sl from companion animals to humans via ticks makes this disease important in terms of One Health approaches. Thus, early and accurate diagnosis and treatment are of utmost importance. Today's standard for the detection of specific antibodies against sl is a two-tiered test system based on an ELISA for screening combined with a line immunoassay (LIA) for confirmation. In this study, 200 canine and 200 equine serum samples with known antibody status...
Camire AC, O'Bier NS, Patel DT, Cramer NA, Straubinger RK, Breitschwerdt EB, Funk RA, Marconi RT.Lyme disease (LD) is a tick-transmitted bacterial infection caused by Borreliella burgdorferi and other closely related species collectively referred to as the LD spirochetes. The LD spirochetes encode an uncharacterized family of proteins originally designated rotein amily welve (PF12). In B. burgdorferi strain B31, PF12 consists of four plasmid-carried genes, encoding BBK01, BBG01, BBH37, and BBJ08. Henceforth, we designate the PF12 proteins amily welve ipoprotein (Ftl) (FtlA) (BBK01), FtlB (BBG01), FtlC (BBH37), and FtlD (BBJ08). The goal of this study was to assess the potential utility o...
Thompson D, Thirumalapura NR, Tewari D.To determine the prevalence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Borrelia burgdorferi infections in Pennsylvania horses. 271 horses. A survey was conducted with PCR and serology to evaluate anaplasmosis and Lyme disease infections in horses from Pennsylvania that were suspected for tick-borne infection. A phagocytophilum was detected in 19/271 (7.0%) Pennsylvania horses tested by the duplex PCR. B burgdorferi was not detected in any horse blood tested by PCR. Overall, 120/271 (44.3%) horses tested positive for presence of A phagocytophilum antibodies by at least the IDEXX SNAP 4Dx Plus lateral flo...
Divers TJ, Mongodin EF, Miller CB, Belgrave RL, Gardner RB, Fraser CM, Schutzer SE.Antemortem diagnosis of neuroborreliosis in horses has been hindered by both the low sensitivity of PCR testing for in CSF and the low specificity of serum:CSF ELISA ratios used to determine intrathecal antibody production against the bacterium. PCR testing of the CSF of an adult horse with acute neurologic disease for the flagellin gene was negative. However, we enriched DNA through nucleic acid hybrid capture, followed by next-generation sequencing, and identified in the CSF of the horse, confirming a diagnosis of neuroborreliosis.
Guarino C, Pinn-Woodcock T, Levine DG, Miller J, Johnson AL.Cases of cranial nuchal bursitis associated with infection have not been thoroughly described. Here, we describe the case of a 17-year-old mare that was presented for low head carriage, dull demeanor, and resistance to haltering. Imaging supported a diagnosis of nuchal bursitis, and bursoscopy with surgical debridement of the nuchal bursa was performed. was identified by molecular diagnostics in serial samples of the bursal fluid, with no other organisms identified. Serology revealed significant elevation in antibodies directed against OspA of , but not the typical infection markers, OspC an...
Neely M, Arroyo L, Jardine C, Clow K, Moore A, Hazlett M, Weese JS.The blacklegged tick (), which transmits , the causative agent of Lyme disease, has undergone rapid range expansion in Ontario. In horses, Lyme disease remains an enigmatic disease, with limited understanding of the pathogenesis and many issues pertaining to selection and interpretation of laboratory tests. We evaluated seropositivity in naturally exposed horses over a 12-mo period and compared paired samples with 2 common serologic tests. Serum samples were collected in 2017, ~1 y after initial testing, from a cohort of 22 horses that were seropositive in a 2016 seroprevalence study. Sampl...
Teodorowski O, Kalinowski M, Winiarczyk D, Janecki R, Winiarczyk S, Adaszek Ł.The purpose of the study was to carry out the molecular surveillance of piroplasmosis, granulocytic anaplasmosis and lyme borreliosis in horses which originated from Poland and exhibited symptoms raising the suspicion of the aforementioned disease units. The presence of Theileria equi genetic material was detected in 37 out of 512 examined horses (7.2%), and Anaplasma phagocytophilum in 9 (1.8%). The DNA of Borrelia burgdorferi was found in 11 out of 204 examined horses (5.4%). The above-cited results indicate that the problem of tick-borne diseases affecting horses in Poland is not as signifi...
Goodrich EL, McLean A, Guarino C.Recent removal and relocation of feral donkeys from vast public lands to more concentrated holding pens, training facilities, and offsite adoption locations raises several health and welfare concerns. Very little is known regarding the common equid pathogens that are circulating within the feral donkey population in and around Death Valley National Park, California, USA. The aim of this study was to utilize serologic assays to assess previous exposure of these donkeys to equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1), equine influenza (EIV), West Nile virus (WNV), and (the causative agent of Lyme disease). The...
Scherrer NM, Knickelbein KE, Engiles JB, Johnstone LK, Tewari D, Johnson AL.To describe the clinical presentation, treatment, and clinical outcome of horses with ocular disease and evidence of systemic or ocular Lyme disease. Methods: Five horses met the inclusion criteria of ocular disease with evidence of B burgdorferi present in ocular or CNS tissues. Methods: The goal of this study was to describe the clinical presentation and progression of ocular disease when associated with ocular or CNS B burgdorferi infection in horses. A retrospective review of medical records was performed on horses admitted for ocular disease with evidence of B burgdorferi infection bet...
Neely M, Arroyo LG, Jardine C, Moore A, Hazlett M, Clow K, Archer H, Weese JS.Recently, the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis), which is the vector of Borrelia burgdorferi, has undergone a range expansion from the northeastern and mid-west United States to areas of southeastern Canada, including parts of Ontario. Understanding the seroprevalence of antibodies against B. burgdorferi in horses and risk factors for exposure is important for monitoring and preventing this emerging disease. Methods: Cross-sectional study of 551 horses in southern, central, and eastern Ontario, Canada. Objective: To assess the seroprevalence of B. burgdorferi in horses in Ontario, Canada; ...
Laamari A, Azzag N, Tennah S, Derdour SY, China B, Boꯚllah R, Ghalmi F.Horses (Equus caballus) are susceptible to tick-borne diseases. Two of them, Lyme borreliosis due to Borrelia burgdorferi and granulocytic anaplasmosis due to Anaplasma phagocytophilum were investigated in Algerian horses. The diseases have been less extensively studied in horses and results pertinent to Algeria have not been published. Methods: Blood samples were obtained from 128 horses. IgG antibodies directed against Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Borrelia burgdorferi were detected by an indirect immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT) and ELISA. The potential effects of age, gender, breed,...
Houben RMAC, Meersschaert C, Hendrickx G, Pitel PH, Amory H.Serological screening tests for Lyme borreliosis have poor specificity, with potential for misdiagnosis and unnecessary antimicrobial treatment. Objective: To evaluate the impact of Lyme borreliosis seroprevalence and serologic test characteristics on the probability of obtaining a false-positive result and impact on antimicrobial use. Methods: Cross-sectional serological survey and modelling. Methods: Sera from 303 horses in southern Belgium were analysed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Apparent seroprevalence was derived from serological data and a Bayesian estimate of true ser...
Seo MG, Kwon OD, Kwak D.Lyme borreliosis is one of the most prevalent tick-borne infectious zoonotic diseases caused by spirochetes of the sensu lato group. The present study assessed the risk factors and prevalence of Lyme borreliosis in ticks parasitizing domestic and wild animals. A total of 589 ticks (329 tick pools) collected from animals were identified as , (85.7%), (10.0%), and (4.3%) using morphological and molecular methods in South Korea. In this study, the 5S-23S gene sequences of (6/329, 1.8%) were detected in ticks taken from mammals, including ticks from horses (2/147 pools, 1.4%), wild boar (1/19 ...
Knödlseder JM, Fell SF, Straubinger RK.A total of 143 horses were included in a study to test a commercial vaccine against Lyme borreliosis. The vaccine contained three different antigens (outer surface protein A, OspA) to prevent the infection with spirochetes - B.burgdorferi sensu stricto, B. afzelii and B. garinii. Horses in Group A (49 animals) received two vaccinations on days 0 and 14 and a booster on day 365, whereas 50 horses in Group B received an additional booster vaccination on day 180. Group C (44 animals) was not immunized. Total antibody levels and specific OspA antibody responses were assessed quantitatively and qua...
Tsachev I, Baymakova M, Pantchev N.Lyme borreliosis, granulocytic anaplasmosis and monocytic ehrlichiosis are well studied in humans and dogs. In horses, these diseases are not widely investigated and limited information is available about their occurrence. The purpose of this study was to present the first ELISA-based report on the seroprevalence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Ehrlichia spp. and Borrelia burgdorferi in horses from Northern Bulgaria. A total of 192 horses were investigated from three regions in Northern Bulgaria (Northwestern, North-Central and Northeastern Bulgaria). All equine sera were tested for A. phagocyto...
Seo MG, Kwon OD, Kwak D.A 23-year-old male Thoroughbred horse at the Korean Military Academy appeared thin with visible rib bones and presented clinical signs of fever, anorexia, lethargy, and severe dehydration. To determine the presence of various febrile disease-causing agents, the 23 cohabiting horses at the academy, including this horse, were subjected to hematology, blood chemistry, and molecular analysis using whole blood samples collected during regular medical check-ups. On the basis of clinical history, physical examination, hematology, blood chemistry, and fecal examination, differential diagnosis using mo...
Lee JJ, Hsieh CL, Widman J, Mingala C, Ardeza Villanueva M, Feng H, Divers T, Chang YF.Current serological tests cannot discriminate between bactericidal Borrelia burgdorferi antibodies from others that are merely a response to Borrelia antigenic stimulation. Objective: To develop a sensitive and convenient luminescence-based serum bactericidal assay (L-SBA) to identify serum borreliacidal activity. Methods: Prospective validation study and method comparison. Methods: Serum samples were obtained either from archives of the Animal Health Diagnostic Center at Cornell University (N = 7) or from a vaccination trial (N = 238). Endogenous complement-inactivated serum sample was in...
Pecoraro HL, Felippe MJB, Miller AD, Divers TJ, Simpson KW, Guyer KM, Duhamel GE.Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is a rare condition in adult horses characterized by hypogammaglobulinemia and increased susceptibility to parasitic and bacterial infections, including recurrent respiratory diseases, septicemia, and meningitis. Lyme disease is often included as a differential diagnosis in CVID horses with signs of meningitis; however, the Borrelia burgdorferi organism has not been demonstrated previously within central nervous system tissues of CVID horses with neurologic disease, to our knowledge. We report herein a case of neuroborreliosis in a CVID horse, confirmed ...
Swinebroad EL.Given the variable clinical signs attributed to Borrelia burgdorferi, including infectious arthritis, neurologic disease, and behavioral changes, B burgdorferi is an important differential for decreased performance in sport horses. The primary vectors (Ixodes tick species) are expanding their range and thus Borrelia species are located in a wider area, making exposure more likely. Due to regionally high seroprevalence and vague clinical signs, diagnosis of Lyme disease in the horse is believed overestimated. Antibiotics are first-line treatment of confirmed Lyme disease. A single positive sero...
Tsachev I, Pantchev N, Marutsov P, Petrov V, Gundasheva D, Baymakova M.Lyme Borreliosis and granulocytic anaplasmosis are less extensively studied in horses than in dogs and humans. Equine ehrlichiosis is not known in Europe and is in the initial stage of investigation in South, Central, and North America. The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of these infections in Bulgaria. A total of 155 horses were investigated from five regions in Southeastern Bulgaria. Horses were tested for Borrelia burgdorferi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Ehrlichia spp. antibodies by a commercial rapid ELISA test. B. burgdorferi and A. phagocytophilum antibodies wer...
Shen Z, Zhang MZ, Stich RW, Mitchell WJ, Zhang S.Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., Rickettsia spp., and Lyme disease associated Borrelia spp. are the most common tick-borne pathogens reported to infect human beings worldwide and other animals, such as dogs and horses. In the present study, we developed a broad-coverage SYBR Green QPCR panel consisting of four individual assays for the detection and partial differentiation of the aforementioned pathogens. All assays were optimized to the same thermocycling condition and had a detection limit of 10 copies per reaction. The assays remained sensitive when used to test canine and equine blood DNA s...
Divers TJ, Gardner RB, Madigan JE, Witonsky SG, Bertone JJ, Swinebroad EL, Schutzer SE, Johnson AL.Borrelia burgdorferi infection is common in horses living in Lyme endemic areas and the geographic range for exposure is increasing. Morbidity after B. burgdorferi infection in horses is unknown. Documented, naturally occurring syndromes attributed to B. burgdorferi infection in horses include neuroborreliosis, uveitis, and cutaneous pseudolymphoma. Although other clinical signs such as lameness and stiffness are reported in horses, these are often not well documented. Diagnosis of Lyme disease is based on exposure to B. burgdorferi, cytology or histopathology of infected fluid or tissue and a...
Johnson AL, Johnstone LK, Stefanovski D.The accuracy of the Lyme multiplex assay for the diagnosis of neuroborreliosis in horses is unknown. Objective: To describe Lyme multiplex results in horses with a postmortem diagnosis of neuroborreliosis. The hypothesis was that paired serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) results and a CSF : serum ratio would allow differentiation of horses with neuroborreliosis from those with other neurologic diseases. Methods: Ninety horses that had neurologic examinations, serum and CSF Lyme multiplex analyses, and postmortem examination of the nervous system performed. Methods: Retrospective study. Data...
Socoloski SNG, de Castro BG, Cordeiro MD, da Fonseca AH, Cepeda MB, Nicolino RR, Lopes LB.Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto is the main etiological agent of Lyme disease (LD) in the USA. In Brazil, it is believed that a similar spirochete is the causal agent of the Baggio-Yoshinari syndrome (BYS), a zoonosis also transmitted by ticks, whose clinical manifestations are similar to those of LD. Despite the epidemiological importance, there are no studies reporting the presence and the prevalence of B. burgdorferi among horses in Mato Grosso State. The aim of this study was to detect and measure the frequency of IgG antibodies anti-B. burgdorferi American strain G39/40 in horses in th...
Caol S, Divers T, Crisman M, Chang YF.Lyme disease in humans is predominantly treated with tetracycline, macrolides or beta lactam antibiotics that have low minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) against Borrelia burgdorferi. Horses with Lyme disease may require long-term treatment making frequent intravenous or intramuscular treatment difficult and when administered orally those drugs may have either a high incidence of side effects or have poor bioavailability. The aim of the present study was to determine the in vitro susceptibility of three B. burgdorferi isolates to three antibiotics of different classes that are commonly us...
Guarino C, Asbie S, Rohde J, Glaser A, Wagner B.Borrelia burgdorferi can induce Lyme disease. Approved Lyme vaccines for horses are currently not available. In an effort to protect horses, veterinarians are using Lyme vaccines licensed for dogs. However, data to assess the response of horses to, or determine the efficacy of this off-label vaccine use are missing. Here, antibodies against outer surface protein A (OspA), OspC, and OspF were quantified in diagnostic serum submissions from horses with a history of vaccination with canine Lyme vaccines. The results suggested that many horses respond with low and often short-lasting antibody resp...
Nascimento DA, Vieira RF, Vieira TS, Toledo RD, Tamekuni K, Santos NJ, Gonçalves DD, Vieira ML, Biondo AW, Vidotto O.The aims of the present study were to serosurvey dogs, horses, and humans highly exposed to tick bites for anti-Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. antibodies, identify tick species present, and determine risk factors associated with seropositivity in a rural settlement of Paraná State, southern Brazil. Eighty-seven residents were sampled, along with their 83 dogs and 18 horses, and individual questionnaires were administered. Immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT) was performed on serum samples and positive samples were subjected to western blot (WB) analysis. Anti-B. burgdorferi antibodies were foun...
Huang ZY, de Boer WF, van Langevelde F, Olson V, Blackburn TM, Prins HH.Hosts species for multi-host pathogens show considerable variation in the species' reservoir competence, which is usually used to measure species' potential to maintain and transmit these pathogens. Although accumulating research has proposed a trade-off between life-history strategies and immune defences, only a few studies extended this to host species' reservoir competence. Using a phylogenetic comparative approach, we studied the relationships between some species' life-history traits and reservoir competence in three emerging infectious vector-borne disease systems, namely Lyme disease, W...
Kulkarni MA, Berrang-Ford L, Buck PA, Drebot MA, Lindsay LR, Ogden NH.In Canada, the emergence of vector-borne diseases may occur via international movement and subsequent establishment of vectors and pathogens, or via northward spread from endemic areas in the USA. Re-emergence of endemic vector-borne diseases may occur due to climate-driven changes to their geographic range and ecology. Lyme disease, West Nile virus (WNV), and other vector-borne diseases were identified as priority emerging non-enteric zoonoses in Canada in a prioritization exercise conducted by public health stakeholders in 2013. We review and present the state of knowledge on the public heal...
Ebani VV, Bertelloni F, Pinzauti P, Cerri D.The aim of the study was to determine the seroprevalence of Leptospira spp. and Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in healthy horses living in 7 provinces of central Italy. In the period 2007-2009, sera from 386 horses were tested by microagglutination test (MAT) to detect antibodies to Leptospira spp., employing the following serovars as antigens: Bratislava, Ballum, Canicola, Icterohaemorrhagiae, Grippotyphosa, Hardjo, Pomona, Tarassovi. 3 animals were positive for the serovars Icterohaemorrhagiae, 2 to Bratislava, and 1 to Pomona, for a total 1.5% seroprevalence. All sera were examined by immu...
Wagner B, Freer H, Rollins A, Erb HN, Lu Z, Gröhn Y.Lyme disease is a zoonotic, vector-borne disease and occurs in mammals including horses. The disease is induced by infection with spirochetes of the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato group. Infection of mammalian hosts requires transmission of spirochetes by infected ticks during tick bites. Lyme disease diagnosis is based on clinical signs, possible exposure to infected ticks, and antibody testing which is traditionally performed by ELISA and Western blotting (WB). This report describes the development and validation of a new fluorescent bead-based multiplex assay for the detection of antibodie...
Chang YF, Ku YW, Chang CF, Chang CD, McDonough SP, Divers T, Pough M, Torres A.The objective of this study is to determine whether doxycycline, ceftiofur or tetracycline could be effectively used to treat equine Lyme disease. Ponies experimentally infected with Borrelia burgdorferi by tick exposure were treated with doxycycline, ceftiofur or tetracycline for 4 weeks (28 days). Doxycyline and ceftiofur treatment were inconsistent in eliminating persistent infection in this experimental model. However, tetracycline treatment seems to eliminate persistent infection. Although serum antibody levels to B. burgdorferi in all ponies declined gradually after antibiotic treatment,...
James FM, Engiles JB, Beech J.A 12-year-old Thoroughbred was examined because of signs of depression, neck stiffness, and poor performance. Results: Physical examination revealed that the horse was dull, appeared depressed, was reluctant to raise its neck and head above a horizontal plane, and had a temperature of 38.5°C (101.3°F). No radiographic or scintigraphic abnormalities of the neck were found; however, high plasma fibrinogen concentration and relative lymphopenia were identified and the horse was seropositive for antibodies against Borrelia burgdorferi. Analysis of CSF revealed neutrophilic inflammation, and resu...
Parker JL, White KK.A complete search of the literature concerning Lyme borreliosis as it relates to horses and cattle was done. The epidemiology, pathogenesis, immunological response to the disease, diagnosis and treatment are discussed. A review of clinical cases in horses and cattle is presented. Clinical signs of Lyme borreliosis in horses include: chronic weight loss, sporadic lameness, laminitis, low grade fever, swollen joints, muscle tenderness, and anterior uveitis. In addition to those clinical signs, neurological signs such as depression, behavioral changes, dysphagia, head tilt and encephalitis can be...
Magnarelli LA, Ijdo JW, Van Andel AE, Wu C, Padula SJ, Fikrig E.To determine whether horses living in tick-infested areas of northeastern United States with clinical signs of borreliosis or granulocytic ehrlichiosis had detectable serum antibodies to both Borrelia burgdorferi and Ehrlichia equi. Methods: Prospective study. Methods: Serum samples from 51 clinically normal horses, 14 horses with clinical signs of borreliosis, and 17 horses with clinical signs of granulocytic ehrlichiosis. Methods: Serum B burgdorferi or E equi antibodies were measured by use of an ELISA, immunoblot analysis, or indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) staining. Results: Of the 82...
Chang YF, Novosol V, McDonough SP, Chang CF, Jacobson RH, Divers T, Quimby FW, Shin S, Lein DH.Seven specific-pathogen-free (SPF) ponies, 1-5 years old, were exposed to Borrelia burgdorferi-infected adult ticks while being treated with dexamethasone over 5 consecutive days. One SPF pony (pony No. 178) was first exposed to laboratory-reared nymphs without B. burgdorferi infection and 3 weeks later was exposed to B. burgdorferi-infected adult ticks with concurrent dexamethasone treatment for 5 consecutive days. Four uninfected ponies treated with dexamethasone, exposed to laboratory-reared ticks without B. burgdorferi infection served as uninfected controls. Clinical signs, bacteriologic ...
Priest HL, Irby NL, Schlafer DH, Divers TJ, Wagner B, Glaser AL, Chang YF, Smith MC.Borrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease is a tick born spirochetal infection. Clinical signs of Lyme borreliosis are uncommon in horses, but when present they are often vague and nonspecific. In horses, Lyme borreliosis has been implicated in musculoskeletal, neurological, reproductive, and ocular disorders, including uveitis, but definitive diagnosis can be challenging as the causative agent is rarely isolated and serologic tests can be unreliable and do not confirm active disease. Here, we report two cases of equine uveitis associated with B. burgdorferi based on the identi...
Burgess EC, Gillette D, Pickett JP.Infection with Borrelia burgdorferi caused panuveitis and arthritis in a pony. Spirochetes were detected by direct immunofluorescence in the anterior chamber of the eye. The carpal joints had severe degenerative joint disease, with synovial proliferation. The synovium and serum had B burgdorferi antibody titers of 1:1024. The pony lived in an area of Wisconsin where infection with B burgdorferi is endemic in human beings. Previously, serum antibodies to B burgdorferi had been found in horses, but disease had not been reported.
Butler CM, Houwers DJ, Jongejan F, van der Kolk JH.This review discusses the literature on B. burgdorferi infections in view of the rising incidence of this infection in general and the increasing concerns of horse owners and equine practitioners. Lyme disease, the clinical expression of Borrelia infections in man is an important health problem. The geographic distribution of B. burgdorferi infections in equidae should resemble that of human cases because the vector tick involved, Ixodes ricinus, feeds on both species and, indeed, the infection has been established many times in horses. However, a definite diagnosis of the disease "Lyme borrel...
Lee SH, Yun SH, Choi E, Park YS, Lee SE, Cho GJ, Kwon OD, Kwak D.Lyme disease is a tick-borne zoonotic infectious disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi. The present study assessed the infection status of B. burgdorferi among horses reared in Korea using ELISA and PCR. Between 2009 and 2013, blood samples were collected from 727 horses throughout Korea. Data for each animal including age, gender, breed, and region of sample collection were used for epidemiological analysis. Overall, 38 (5.2%; true prevalence: 5.5%) of 727 horses were seropositive by ELISA. There were statistically significant differences according to breed and region (P<0.001) whose diff...
Magnarelli LA, Flavell RA, Padula SJ, Anderson JF, Fikrig E.Serum samples from dogs and equids suspected of having canine or equine borreliosis, respectively, were analyzed in polyvalent enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) with whole-cell or recombinant antigens of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto. Purified preparations of recombinant antigens included outer surface protein A (OspA), OspB, OspC, OspE, OspF, and p41-G (a fragment of flagellin). Of the 36 dog sera that reacted positively to whole-cell antigen, 32 (88.9%) contained antibodies to one or more recombinant antigens. Reactivities to OspF (88.9% positive) and p41-G (75% positive) were...
Journal of medical entomologyAugust 9, 2006
Volume 43, Issue 4 762-773 doi: 10.1603/0022-2585(2006)43[762:DACOBB]2.0.CO;2
Morshed MG, Scott JD, Fernando K, Geddes G, McNabb A, Mak S, Durden LA.The blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis Say (Acari: Ixodidae), has a wide geographical distribution in Ontario, Canada, with a detected range extending at least as far north as the 50th parallel. Our data of 591 adult I. scapularis submissions collected from domestic animals (canines, felines, and equines) and humans during a 10-yr period (1993-2002) discloses a monthly questing activity in Ontario that peaks in May and October. The Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi Johnson, Schmidt, Hyde, Steigerwalt & Brenner was detected in 12.9% of I. scapularis adults collected from domesti...
Johnstone LK, Engiles JB, Aceto H, Buechner-Maxwell V, Divers T, Gardner R, Levine R, Scherrer N, Tewari D, Tomlinson J, Johnson AL.Equine neuroborreliosis (NB), Lyme disease, is difficult to diagnose and has limited description in the literature. Objective: Provide a detailed description of clinical signs, diagnostic, and pathologic findings of horses with NB. Methods: Sixteen horses with histologically confirmed NB. Methods: Retrospective review of medical records at the University of Pennsylvania and via an ACVIM listserv query with inclusion criteria requiring possible exposure to Borrelia burgdorferi and histologic findings consistent with previous reports of NB without evidence of other disease. Results: Sixteen hors...
Bosler EM, Cohen DP, Schulze TL, Olsen C, Bernard W, Lissman B.By using paired sera the IgM and IgG host responses were analyzed in dogs with ELISA and Western blot techniques. Antibodies in clinical seropositive dogs bound to 4-25 IgM and up to 40 or more IgG antigenic determinants. Early IgM response to the 41-kDa flagellin persisted for at least 9 months and involved as many as seven other peptides. IgG response expanded later in the disease and involved more immunogens than are currently recognized in late human disease. A percentage of asymptomatic dogs that later developed clinical symptoms were seropositive. Immunoblot studies suggested that B. bur...
Magnarelli LA, Anderson JF.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.
Guina T, Oliver DB.We cloned the gene encoding a membrane-interactive protein of Borrelia burgdorferi by means of its haemolytic activity in Escherichia coli. The haemolytic activity was erythrocyte-species specific, with progressively decreasing activity for erythrocytes from horse, sheep, and rabbit, respectively. Genetic analysis of the haemolytic determinant revealed two borrelia haemolysin genes, blyA and blyB, that are part of a predicted four-gene operon which is present in multiple copies on the 30 kb circular plasmid(s) of B. burgdorferi B31. blyA encodes a predicted alpha-helical 7.4 kDa protein with a...
Wagner B, Erb HN.Reported cases of Lyme disease (a chronic disease caused by infection with Borrelia burgdorferi) in humans increased more than two-fold between 1992 and 2006 in the United States. Recently, the annual number of reported human Lyme disease cases stabilized (according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention) but the geographic distribution seemed to increase. In New York (NY) State, USA, a spread from the original Lyme disease focus in southeastern parts of the state has occurred. We determined incidence risks of new companion animal infection in 2011 with B. burgdorferi by county in 45...
Marcus LC, Patterson MM, Gilfillan RE, Urband PH.Twelve of 50 randomly selected horses from areas endemic for Borrelia burgdorferi had indirect fluorescent antibody titers of 1:8 to 1:2,048 against B burgdorferi. One of 50 horses from nonendemic areas had a titer of 1:8. This difference in the number of horses seropositive for B burgdorferi (P less than 0.002) and our finding that seropositive horses did not have agglutinating antibodies against potentially cross-reacting Leptospira spp indicated that horses in endemic areas were exposed to B burgdorferi and that the spirochete induced an antibody response in the horses.
Magnarelli LA, Anderson JF, Shaw E, Post JE, Palka FC.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 Lym...
Egenvall A, Franzén P, Gunnarsson A, Engvall EO, Vågsholm I, Wikström UB, Artursson K.A cross-sectional study of the seroprevalence to Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato and granulocytic Ehrlichia spp. in Swedish horses was conducted to evaluate associations with demographic, clinical and tick-exposure factors. From September 1997-1998, blood samples from 2018 horses were collected from the animals presented to veterinary clinics affiliated with the Swedish Horserace Totalizator Board (regardless of the primary cause for consultation). Standardized questionnaires with information both from owners and attending veterinarians accompanied each blood sample. The apparent seroprevalenc...
Passamonti F, Veronesi F, Cappelli K, Capomaccio S, Reginato A, Miglio A, Vardi DM, Stefanetti V, Coletti M, Bazzica C, Pepe M.Lyme borreliosis (LB) is a multi-systemic tick-borne disease affecting both humans and animals, including horses, and is caused by a group of interrelated spirochetes classified within the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.) complex. Despite the high reported seroprevalence in the European equine population for B. burgdorferi s.l., to-date no documented clinical cases have been described. A 6-year-old Paint gelding was referred with a history of three weeks of fever, intermittent lameness and digital flexor tendon sheath effusion of the right hind limb. Based on a strict diagnostic protocol...
Funk RA, Pleasant RS, Witonsky SG, Reeder DS, Werre SR, Hodgson DR.Lyme disease can affect people, dogs, and horses, but it remains poorly understood, especially in the horse. Determining the seroprevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi in horses in different geographic areas will enable better understanding of the epidemiology of the disease, thus improving diagnosis and treatment of affected animals. Objective: To determine the seroprevalence of B. burgdorferi in horses in southwest Virginia. Methods: Horses presented for routine Coggins testing from January 2013 to January 2014 had additional blood drawn for Lyme Multiplex Assay testing. Methods: Of 492 samples ...
Fritz CL, Kjemtrup AM.Despite more than 25 years' experience with Lyme borreliosis, much remains to be learned about this complex zoonosis. Practicing veterinarians, particularly those in the northeastern and upper midwestern states, where Lyme borreliosis is highly endemic, should be familiar with the ecologic features and typical clinical signs of Lyme borreliosis. Interpretation of signs and serologic test results should be made with consideration of the regional prevalence of Lyme borreliosis and the animal's opportunity for exposure to infected Ixodes spp. The availability of recently marketed topical acaracid...
Käsbohrer A, Schönberg A.The prevalence of B. burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme Borreliosis in humans, was determined in domestic animals living in Berlin. 189 dogs, 29 cats, 224 horses and 194 cows were investigated. Using the indirect immunofluorescence test (IFT) 5.8% of the dogs and 24.5% of the cows investigated showed a positive reaction at titres of 1:128 or higher. Horses and cats gave negative results. ELISA was more sensitive than IFT. 10.1% of the dogs, 16.1% of the horses and 66% of the local cows showed positive reaction. Domestic animals seem to be in contact with B. burgdorferi and can be a reser...
Laamari A, Azzag N, Tennah S, Derdour SY, China B, Boꯚllah R, Ghalmi F.Horses (Equus caballus) are susceptible to tick-borne diseases. Two of them, Lyme borreliosis due to Borrelia burgdorferi and granulocytic anaplasmosis due to Anaplasma phagocytophilum were investigated in Algerian horses. The diseases have been less extensively studied in horses and results pertinent to Algeria have not been published. Methods: Blood samples were obtained from 128 horses. IgG antibodies directed against Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Borrelia burgdorferi were detected by an indirect immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT) and ELISA. The potential effects of age, gender, breed,...
Seo MG, Kwon OD, Kwak D.Lyme borreliosis is one of the most prevalent tick-borne infectious zoonotic diseases caused by spirochetes of the sensu lato group. The present study assessed the risk factors and prevalence of Lyme borreliosis in ticks parasitizing domestic and wild animals. A total of 589 ticks (329 tick pools) collected from animals were identified as , (85.7%), (10.0%), and (4.3%) using morphological and molecular methods in South Korea. In this study, the 5S-23S gene sequences of (6/329, 1.8%) were detected in ticks taken from mammals, including ticks from horses (2/147 pools, 1.4%), wild boar (1/19 ...
Oliver JH, Magnarelli LA, Hutcheson HJ, Anderson JF.Results of a survey for ixodid ticks and/or serum antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi from 14 species of small to large mammals from eastern coastal areas of the United States are presented. Most samples were obtained from July 1987 through June 1989 (excluding December-March) at 3 locales: Assateague Is. National Seashore, Worcester Co., MD., and Accomack Co., VA. (approximately 38 degrees 05' N 75 degrees 10' W), and Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Dare Co., NC (approximately 35 degrees 30' N 76 degrees 35' W). Hosts sampled included opossums (Didelphis virginiana), least shrews (Cryptotis p...
