Volume 6, Number 2—April 2000
Research
Competence of American Robins as Reservoir Hosts for Lyme Disease Spirochetes
Dania Richter*†
, Andrew Spielman*, Nicholas Komar*, and Franz-Rainer Matuschka*†
, Andrew Spielman*, Nicholas Komar*, and Franz-Rainer Matuschka*†Table 2
Infectivity for laboratory mice of Lyme disease spirochetes that had previously infected American robins
| Avian host | Murine host | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infecting nymphs |
Xenodiagnostic ticksa |
Infecting nymphs |
Xenodiagnostic ticks |
||||||
| Bird no. | No.ticks | %engorged | No. examined | % infected | Mouse no. | No.ticks | % engorged | No. examined | % infected |
| 1 | 12 | 83.3 | 18 | 83.3 | 1 | 6 | 100 | 10 | 90 |
| 2 | 12 | 100 | 21 | 95.2 | 2 | 6 | 83.3 | 10 | 100 |
| 3 | 12 | 100 | 22 | 77.3 | 3 | 6 | 100 | 10 | 100 |
| 4 | 12 | 100 | 17 | 88.2 | 4 | 6 | 83.3 | 10 | 100 |
aXenodiagnostic ticks that had engorged on each bird were used to infect the corresponding mouse.
