Early diagnosis is critical in treating Lyme disease.
However, nearly one quarter of Lyme disease patients are initially misdiagnosed
because currently available serological tests have poor sensitivity and
specificity during the early stages of infection. Misdiagnosed patients may go
untreated and thus progress to late-stage Lyme disease, where they face longer
and more invasive treatments, as well as persistent symptoms.
Existing tests assess the presence of antibodies against
bacterial proteins, which take weeks to form after the initial infection and
persist after the infection is gone. Now, a nanotechnology-inspired technique
developed by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania may lead to
diagnostics that can detect the organism itself.