Department of Dermatology, Allergology and Venereal Diseases, University of Helsinki and Center of Inflammation, Helsinki University Central Hospital, FIN-00029 Helsinki, Finland.
Acta Derm Venereol. 2018 Mar 13;98(3):355-360. doi: 10.2340/00015555-2831.
A retrospective study of 109 skin biopsies with granuloma annulare (GA) or morphea histology from patients with suspected tick bite was performed. Biopsies were tested for cutaneous Borrelia burgdorferi DNA using PCR. The same biopsies were analysed for tick-borne novel agents, Chlamydia-related bacteria (members of the Chlamydiales order), using a PCR-based method. Borrelia DNA was detected in 7/73 (9.6%) biopsies with GA and in 1/36 (2.8 %) biopsies with morphea, while Chlamydiales DNA was found in 53/73 (72.6%) biopsies with GA and 25/34 (73.4%) biopsies with morphea. All Borrelia DNA-positive GA samples were also positive for Chlamydiales DNA. The Chlamydiales sequences detected in GA were heterogeneous and contained Waddliaceae and Rhabdochlamydiaceae bacteria, which are also present in Ixodes ricinus ticks, while the Chlamydiales sequences detected in morphea closely resembled those found in healthy skin. In conclusion, tick-mediated infections can trigger GA in some cases, while correlation of either Borrelia or Chlamydiales with morphea is unlikely.
对 109 例疑似蜱虫叮咬患者的环状肉芽肿(GA)或硬斑病组织学皮肤活检进行了回顾性研究。使用 PCR 检测活检组织的皮肤伯氏疏螺旋体 DNA。使用基于 PCR 的方法对相同的活检组织进行 tick-borne novel agents(衣原体相关细菌(衣原体目成员))分析。在 7/73(9.6%)例 GA 活检和 1/36(2.8%)例硬斑病活检中检测到伯氏疏螺旋体 DNA,而在 53/73(72.6%)例 GA 活检和 25/34(73.4%)例硬斑病活检中检测到 Chlamydiales DNA。所有伯氏疏螺旋体 DNA 阳性的 GA 样本均对 Chlamydiales DNA 呈阳性。在 GA 中检测到的 Chlamydiales 序列具有异质性,包含 Waddliaceae 和 Rhabdochlamydiaceae 细菌,这些细菌也存在于硬蜱中,而在硬斑病中检测到的 Chlamydiales 序列与健康皮肤中发现的序列非常相似。总之,在某些情况下,蜱介导的感染可能会引发 GA,而伯氏疏螺旋体或衣原体与硬斑病之间的相关性不太可能。