DETECTION OF MARKERS OF LYME BORRELIOSIS AND EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS INFECTION IN PATIENTS WITH LOCALIZED SCLERODERMA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11603/1811-2471.2025.v.i4.15810Keywords:
Lyme borreliosis, Epstein-Barr viral infection, localized scleroderma (morphea), diagnosisAbstract
SUMMARY. The ultimate cause of localized scleroderma remains unknown. A number of scientists identify such provoking factors as drugs/trauma or viruses of measles, chickenpox, Epstein-Barr, hepatitis B and C, and bacteria of the genus Borrelia burgdorferi, which are of certain importance in the development and progression of localized scleroderma.
The aim – to determine the frequency of detection of specific IgM and/or IgG antibodies to the causative agents of Lyme borreliosis and chronic Epstein-Barr virus infection (CEBV) in patients with localized scleroderma.
Material and Methods. The study included 28 patients with localized scleroderma (morphea) who were treated on an outpatient and inpatient basis at the Ternopil Regional Clinical Dermatological and Venereological Dispensary between 2022 and 2024. The subjects were aged 24 to 68 years. Men accounted for 32.1 % and women for 67.9 %. The diagnosis of localized scleroderma was established on the basis of characteristic clinical manifestations of the disease and formulated in accordance with the ICD-10 classification.
All patients were tested in the laboratory for the presence of specific IgM and/or IgG antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s. l.) complex. The study was conducted in two stages (ELISA and immunoblot) using the EUROLINE Borrelia RN-AT test system from Euroimmun AG (Germany). The results were analyzed according to the manufacturer's recommendations.
Serological diagnosis of EBV was performed using a multiplex indirect immunofluorescence assay (IIFA) with BIOCHIP technology. The BIOCHIP Sequence EBV (with avidity determination) test system (EUROIMMUN, Germany) was used, which contains the capsid antigen and its gp125 and p19 proteins, as well as EBV nuclear and early antigens.
EBV DNA was determined in the blood plasma and saliva of patients using real-time PCR, using the Biocore® EBV kit from Biocore Technologies, Ukraine. The active phase of EBV was indicated by the presence of EBV DNA in blood and/or saliva in an amount of 103–107 copies/ml.
Results. Specific IgM and/or IgG antibodies to B. burgdorferi s. l. were diagnosed in the blood serum of 35.7 % of patients with localized scleroderma using a two-step serological diagnosis of Lyme borreliosis (ELISA and immunoblot).
The multiplex indirect immunofluorescence method using BIOCHIP technology allowed the diagnosis of chronic EBV infection in all examined patients with localized scleroderma. Using real-time PCR, Epstein-Barr virus DNA was verified in the saliva and/or blood of 42.8 % of patients with localized scleroderma.
Conclusions. Positive results of the diagnosis of specific IgM and/or IgG antibodies to B. burgdorferi s. l. and Epstein-Barr virus DNA in the saliva and/or blood of patients with localized scleroderma allowed us to establish the simultaneous association of Borrelia burgdorferi s. l. complex and Epstein-Barr virus in the development of localized scleroderma. This study was conducted for the first time among residents of the Ternopil region.
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