The Lyme Disease Biobank: Characterization of 550 Patient and Control Samples from the East Coast and Upper Midwest of the United States
Elizabeth J. Horn, George Dempsey, Anna M. Schotthoefer, U. Lena Prisco, Matthew McArdle, Stephanie S. Gervasi, Marc G. Golightly, Cathy De Luca, M. B. Evans, Bobbi S. Pritt, Elitza S. Theel, Radha Iyer, Dionysios Liveris, Guiqing Wang, Don Goldstein, Ira Schwartz
Abstract
by culture. Serology was performed on all samples using the CDC's standard two-tiered testing algorithm (STTTA) for LD. LD diagnosis was supported by laboratory testing in 82 cases, including positive results by use of the STTTA, PCR, or culture or positive results by two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for cases presenting with EM lesion sizes of >5 cm. The remaining 216 cases had negative laboratory testing results. For the controls, 43 were positive by at least one of the tiers and 6 were positive by use of the STTTA. The results obtained with this collection highlight and reinforce the known limitations of serologic testing in early LD, with only 29% of individuals presenting with EM lesion sizes of >5 cm yielding a positive result using the STTTA. Aliquots of whole blood, serum, and urine from clinically characterized patients with and without LD are available to investigators in academia and industry for evaluation or development of novel diagnostic assays for LD, to continue to improve upon currently available methods.