''Borrelia anserina'' is a helical

spirochete A spirochaete () or spirochete is a member of the phylum Spirochaetota (also called Spirochaetes ), which contains distinctive diderm (double-membrane) Gram-negative bacteria, most of which have long, helically coiled (corkscrew-shaped or ...

bacterium Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among the ...

with dimensions around 8-20/0,2-0,3

μm The micrometre (Commonwealth English as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American English), also commonly known by the non-SI term micron, is a unit of length in the International System ...

and with five to eight spirals. Their mobility is very high. ''B. anserina'' can be colored with the May Grunwald-Giemsa method.

Cultivation

In microbiological laboratories, ''B. anserina'' bacteria can be grown on special protein-enriched media (rich in ovoalbumins or animal tissue (that contains

myoglobin Myoglobin (symbol Mb or MB) is an iron- and oxygen-binding protein found in the cardiac and skeletal muscle, skeletal Muscle, muscle tissue of vertebrates in general and in almost all mammals. Myoglobin is distantly related to hemoglobin. Compar ...

)), in

anaerobic Anaerobic means "living, active, occurring, or existing in the absence of free oxygen", as opposed to aerobic which means "living, active, or occurring only in the presence of oxygen." Anaerobic may also refer to: *Adhesive#Anaerobic, Anaerobic ad ...

conditions. They can also be grown in embryonic chicken eggs. The laboratory cultivation of ''B. anserina'' is rarely done and constitutes a diagnostic method in bird borreliosis and spirochetosis. ''B. anserina'' used to be maintained in embryonic chicken eggs or by serial passages in domestic chickens until in 1986 it was discovered that it could be cultivated in Barbour-Stoenner-Kelly (BSK) medium, which facilitated and made future research more cost-effective.

Pathogenity

''B. anserina'' is a pathogenic agent for poultry (chickens, turkeys, ducks etc.) and causes a disease called borreliosis or spirochetosis. This bacterium is transmitted from bird to bird by

ticks Ticks are parasitic arachnids of the order Ixodida. They are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, and species, but can become larger when engorged. Ticks a ...

from the ''

Argas ''Argas'' is a genus of tick Ticks are parasitic arachnids of the order Ixodida. They are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, and species, but can bec ...

'' and '' Ornitodorus'' genera. The major symptoms of an infection with ''B. anserina'' are:

anemia Anemia (also spelt anaemia in British English) is a blood disorder in which the blood has a reduced ability to carry oxygen. This can be due to a lower than normal number of red blood cells, a reduction in the amount of hemoglobin availabl ...

diarrhea Diarrhea (American English), also spelled diarrhoea or diarrhœa (British English), is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements in a day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration d ...

, and severe neurological dysfunctions.

Cultivation

Pathogenity

References

Further reading