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1 October 1991 ANTIBODIES TO BORRELIA BURGDORFERI IN DEER AND RACCOONS
Louis A. Magnarelli, James H. Oliver Jr., H. Joel Hutcheson, John F. Anderson
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Abstract

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed to detect serum antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme borreliosis, in deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and raccoons (Procyon lotor). Blood samples were collected from these mammals in Connecticut, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Seropositivity for deer was highest in Connecticut (56% of 353 sera) and Maryland (51% of 35 sera). Raccoons in Connecticut, Maryland, North Carolina, and Florida also had antibodies to B. burgdorferi, but prevalence of positive sera was highest in Maryland (79% of 14 samples). Based on adsorption tests, the immunoglobulins detected in these mammals were probably specific to B. burgdorferi. The ELISA was more sensitive than an indirect fluorescent antibody staining method and was more suitable for analyzing large numbers of serum samples.

Magnarelli, Oliver, Hutcheson, and Anderson: ANTIBODIES TO BORRELIA BURGDORFERI IN DEER AND RACCOONS
Louis A. Magnarelli, James H. Oliver Jr., H. Joel Hutcheson, and John F. Anderson "ANTIBODIES TO BORRELIA BURGDORFERI IN DEER AND RACCOONS," Journal of Wildlife Diseases 27(4), 562-568, (1 October 1991). https://doi.org/10.7589/0090-3558-27.4.562
Received: 13 February 1991; Published: 1 October 1991
KEYWORDS
antibodies
Borrelia burgdorferi
deer Odocoileus virginianus
enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay
Lyme borreliosis
raccoons Procyon lotor
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