Isolation Of Borrelia-Burgdorferi (Spirochaetales, Spirochaetaceae) From Ixodes-Scapularis And Dermacentor-Albipictus Ticks (Acari, Ixodide) In Oklahoma

Borrelia burgdorferi was isolated from Ixodes scapularis Say and Dermacentor albipictus Packard that were removed as partially fed adults from white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus Zimmermann, in Oklahoma. Isolation in media was accomplished only after homogenates of pooled field-collected ticks were inoculated into laboratory-reared Peromyscus leucopus and reisolated from the urinary bladder into BSK II media. Both isolates were confirmed by western blot analysis and reactivity with monoclonal antibody H5332. These are the first reported isolates of B. burgdorferi from Oklahoma from these two tick species and are the first isolates from ticks from the south-central United States that were infective for laboratory-reared P. leucopus.