title: Antibodies and T-cell reactivity to Borrelia burgdorferi in an asymptomatic population: a study of healthy blood donors in an inland town district in the south-east of Sweden.
abstract: To address the issue of whether Borrelia infection can be asymptomatic, blood donors with no history of borreliosis (n = 408) were screened for antibodies against Borrelia burgdorferi. Seropositive individuals (n = 17) were further investigated with respect to Borrelia-specific T-cell reactivity, using an interferon-gamma ELISPOT assay. Anti-Borrelia antibodies as well as Borrelia-specific T-cell responses were evident in 9 asymptomatic donors, strongly supporting a current or previous asymptomatic Borrelia infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health and Environment, Faculty of Health Sciences, University Hospital, Linköping, Sweden.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ekerfelt
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Masreliez
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Svenvik
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ernerudh
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roberg
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Forsberg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D001782:Blood Donors; D025065:Borrelia burgdorferi / Q000276:immunology*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D007371:Interferon-gamma