Ranjan Ramasamy

Title : Diagnosis and differentiation of lyme disease and tick-borne relapsing fever borreliosis with multiplex line immunoblots

Abstract:

Lyme disease (LD) is caused by certain species of tick-borne bacteria of the genus Borrelia termed Lyme disease Borreliae (LDB). LD often causes chronic debilitating infections that are difficult to diagnose by clinical symptoms alone. The detection of serum antibodies to specific LDB antigens has a widely recognized role in supporting the diagnosis of LD, and a variety of immunoassay formats are presently used for this purpose. Recent findings highlight a need for serological differentiation of LD from tick-borne relapsing fever (TBRF) caused by a separate group of Borrelia species termed relapsing fever Borreliae (RFB), because LD and TBRF share clinical symptoms and have an overlapping geographical distribution. The development of serological tests for TBRF is at an early stage compared with LD. The application of line immunoblots (IBs), that utilize multiple proteins applied as lines on nitrocellulose membrane strips, for the serological diagnosis and differentiation of LD and TBRF are discussed in this presentation.

Audience take-away: 

 

• Appreciation of the complex immunodiagnostic needs in Lyme Disease (LD) and Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever (TBRF) borreliosis
• Assist teaching of immunodiagnostics and clinical immunology
• Improve the application of immunodiagnostic tests for tick-borne and other infectious diseases
• Advance understanding of immune responses in acute and chronic Borrelia infections
  Help develop better immunoassays for medical and veterinary diagnostic purposes

Biography:

Ranjan Ramasamy graduated from the University of Cambridge, UK and then obtained a PhD also from the University of Cambridge. He has since held academic appointments in the UK and abroad including Australia, Sri Lanka and the USA. He was the Chairman of the National Science Foundation of Sri Lanka, Professor of Life Sciences at the Institute of Fundamental Studies in Kandy in Sri Lanka, Professor of Biochemistry in the University of Jaffna in Jaffna Sri Lanka, Professor of Immunology in the University Brunei Darussalam Medical School and held institute appointments at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge in the UK & Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation in La Jolla in the USA. He has more 250 publications in fields pertaining to Medical Sciences. He was on the Committee on Scientific Planning and Review of the International Council for Science, and the Board of Governors of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology.