[Belle]

 :frusty2:I've got a nasty that we can't identify and believe it to be a new strain of spirochete. The most obvious characteristic is it's tendency to mutulate and mangle hair shafts and follicles. It is very filamentous and seems to wind around the hair. The filaments also spread out and creates a webbing just beneath the skin. This webbing makes it almost impossible for individual hairs to grow right out of a follicle. Because of this it is very common to find multiple hairs emerging from one opening. These fibrous filaments ( the bacteria itself or a product of it?) shed from the body in great quantitiies. They have a very static nature to them and we have observed undulating movement many times. They also have a light reflective quality to them. We have copious video photos of microscopic slides showing it in every configuration. Amazing stuff! We haven't seen anything like it anywhere and we have perfected an imaging technique that gives us great shots. Anyone got any ideas? Maybe someone out there who would jump at the chance to help us research this more, we need  active and open minds. Any input would be greatly appeciated! We've been doing this for 4 years and a fresh brain would be fantastic! Thanks, BELLE

[Mitch]

Have you tested to see if its enzymatic activity is different then regular spirochete?

I know Roche use to sell something called an Enterotube II that could differentitate different strains of enteric bacterium. Maybe they sell something that can help you.

[Brower]

Hi

If you can grow this bacteria, why not do some RNA analysis and get some idea of where it is in a phylogenetic sense and go from there.  16S and 23S RNA sequences (I think these numbers are right) would give some clues as to the group it belongs to, and universal primers are available for the analysis.

Cheers