A Comparative Analysis of Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification and Polymerase Chain Reaction Assays for the Detection of Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever Borrelia in Borrelia tholozani Ticks from Northwest Iran

Background & Objectives: The tick Borrelia tholozani serves as a principal vector for Relapsing Fever Borrelia (RFB), an endemic pathogen in Iran. In this study, we assessed and compared the efficacy of loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays for the detection of Borrelia by targeting the glycerophosphodiester phosphodiesterase (glpQ) gene—a sequence conserved across all RFB species—in O. tholozani ticks collected from Northwest Iran. Materials & Methods: A total of 103 O. tholozani ticks were collected from Northwest Iran in 2017. Following DNA extraction, the samples were analyzed using both glpQ-LAMP and glpQ-PCR assays. Results: The glpQ gene sequence indicative of RFB was identified in 18.44% (19 out of 103) of the ticks when analyzed by glpQ-LAMP, whereas the glpQ-PCR assay detected RFB DNA in 12.62% (13 out of 103) of the samples. Conclusion: The glpQ-LAMP assay is proposed as a rapid and reliable molecular diagnostic tool for monitoring RFB in ticks from areas endemic for Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever (TBRF).

A Comparative Analysis of Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification and Polymerase Chain Reaction Assays for the Detection of Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever Borrelia in Borrelia tholozani Ticks from Northwest Iran Keywords:

Borrelia , Borrelia tholozani , glpQ , LAMP , PCR