Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

The efficiency with which the spirochaete Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto was transmitted from laboratory mice to larval and nymphal Ixodes ricinus ticks was assessed, using the polymerase chain reaction. The transmission efficiency to nymphs was significantly greater than to larvae when both fed together on the same host. Increased tick infestation levels of mice were correlated with significantly greater engorgement weights and higher B. burgdorferi transmission coefficients from mice to nymphs. These observations indicate that both the feeding success of ticks and the transmission coefficients from host to tick may be influenced by the tick infestation level of an infected host. The infestation level and the relative numbers of each life stage of the tick are factors which should be considered in the design of transmission experiments.

Type

Journal article

Journal

Exp Appl Acarol

Publication Date

06/1998

Volume

22

Pages

367 - 372

Keywords

Animals, Arachnid Vectors, Borrelia burgdorferi Group, DNA, Bacterial, Disease Models, Animal, Female, Ixodes, Lyme Disease, Mice, Mice, Inbred BALB C, Nymph, Polymerase Chain Reaction, Prevalence, Random Allocation, Tick Infestations