Efficacy of the urinary bladder for isolation of Borrelia burgdorferi from naturally infected, wild Peromyscus leucopus

Abstract

The efficacy of culturing urinary bladder tissue for Borrelia burgdorferi from naturally infected, wild Peromyscus leucopus mice was determined. The urinary bladder cultures were as efficient as spleen, kidney, and blood tissue cultures. The rapid B. burgdorferi isolation (mean, 6 days) from mouse urinary bladders should aid in defining new Lyme disease foci.