Babesia microti and Borrelia bissettii transmission by Ixodes spinipalpis ticks among prairie voles, Microtus ochrogaster, in Colorado.

An endemic transmission cycle of Babesia microti was discovered in Colorado in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. B. microti were found by PCR in 4 of 25 Ixodes spinipalpis tick pools tested (a 3.2 % minimum infection rate) and in 87% (13 of 15) of Microtus ochrogaster (the prairie vole) spleen and blood samples. Using naturally infected I. spinipalpis collected from wild-caught M. ochrogaster as vectors, B. microti and Borrelia bissettii were successfully transmitted to laboratory-born M. ochrogaster. Neither I. spinipalpis, nor M. ochrogaster (the prairie vole) have been previously reported as a vector or a reservoir host of B. microti. Unlike the east coast of the United States where Peromyscus leucopus is an important reservoir for B. microti, evidence for Peromyscus spp. (neither P. maniculatus nor P. difficilis) as B. microti reservoirs was not found in this study.

Analysis of immunoglobulin classes and subclasses in response to infection of Balb/cJ and C57BL/6J mice with Coxiella burnetii.

In order to establish defined immunological parameters for Q fever infection models, a microtitre enzyme-linked immunosorbent fluorescence assay (ELISA) was used for the first time to analyse the humoral immune response of Balb/cJ and C57BL/6J mice after experimental infection with Coxiella burnetii strain 'Nine Mile' in phase I. The experimental infection evoked a seroconversion in all mice within 10 days. Typically, the immune response measured against the whole-cell antigen showed an early increase of immunoglobulin (Ig) M followed by a later increase of the IgG subclasses. The IgA was low during the entire investigation period. Within the IgG subclasses only IgG2a and IgG2b gained higher values, whereby C57BL/6J mice produced high IgG2b titres and significantly lower IgG2a titres. In contrast, Balb/cJ mice developed IgG2a and IgG2b at equal levels. The use of partial antigens of C. burnetii demonstrated that the dominating IgG2b reaction of the C57BL/6J mice was directed against the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of C. burnetii. This reaction was almost absent in Balb/cJ mice. In contrast, the SP27 protein antigen did not evoke different IgG2b reactions within the two breeds. No significant influence was observed within the two breeds in regard to sex or between hormone synchronized and non-hormone synchronized animals.

Evaluation of different fixatives and treatments for immunohistochemical demonstration of Coxiella burnetti in paraffin-embedded tissues.

Various fixatives and treatments such as acetone, methanol, Bouin fixative, modified Bouin fixative, 10% Formalin, modified methacarn, periodate-lysine-paraformaldehyde, acetone-methyl benzoate-xylene, and EDTA were evaluated for their effect on the immunoreactivity of Coxiella burnetii in paraffin-embedded tissues by using the avidin-biotin-peroxidase complex and the peroxidase-antiperoxidase procedure. C. burnetii antigen was shown to be present in liver, spleen, and uterus tissues of experimentally infected mice by all methods of fixation and treatment. A positive immunoreaction was seen in cytoplasmic vacuoles of macrophages, as extracellular rod-shaped organisms, and as residual particulate extra- and intracellular debris. Immunoreactivity and cellular preservation, however, varied substantially with the individual fixatives. Optimal immunostaining of C. burnetii was achieved by EDTA treatment and Bouin and acetone fixation. The avidin-biotin-peroxidase technique proved to be slightly more sensitive than the peroxidase-antiperoxidase procedure when primary antibody dilution was used as the criterion for sensitivity.

[Endocrine insufficiency in alcaptonuria? A case report and survey of the literature (author's transl)]. / Endokrine Ausfälle bei Alkaptonurie? Kasuistik und Zusammenstellung aus der Literatur.

In a 49 years old patient with alcaptonuria we studied the question whether disturbances of the endocrine organs by deposition of products of homogenistic acid could be detected analogous to disturbances of connective tissue. The function of the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland were shown to be normal. The only defect of the endocrine organs was a hypergonadotropic hypogonadism with a serum testosterone of 5.4 and 9.4 mumol/l respectively (155 and 270 ng/dl rsp.) at elevated LH and FSH values. A sufficient stimulation of the testosterone in serum by chorionic gonadotropin (Primogonyl) could be demonstrated, thus supporting the diagnosis of a compensated insuffiency of the Leydig cells. This disorder might be a late endocrine defect due to the basic metabolic disturbance of the disease.