This core will serve as a centralized laboratory for the 1) propagation of Treponema pallidum strains for all projects; 2) for production of antisera directed against individual T. pallidum strains and recombinant msp- homologue molecules for Projects 1 and 2 for immunization of rabbits with recombinant msp-homologue molecules for protection studies in Project 3. T. pallidum cannot be propagated in vitro and must be continually passaged in rabbits, requiring specialized expertise, particularly for the non-Nichols strains, which are much more difficult to grow. These tasks are quite time- consuming and require a large amount of technologist effort, a swell as a large number of rabbits. The treponemes needed for the various experiments proposed in the three projects can be provided much more economically, in terms of minimizing the number of rabbits as well as technologist time, if they are propagated centrally. Provision of antisera raised by the core to the project leaders will also assure uniformity of specificity, permitting comparison of results from one project to another. The core will be directed by Dr. Sheila Lukehart, who has 25 years of experience in the propagation of pathogenic treponemes.

Project Start
2002-08-01
Project End
2003-06-30
Budget Start
Budget End
Support Year
9
Fiscal Year
2002
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Washington
Department
Type
DUNS #
135646524
City
Seattle
State
WA
Country
United States
Zip Code
98195
Lukehart, Sheila A (2008) Scientific monogamy: thirty years dancing with the same bug: 2007 Thomas Parran Award Lecture. Sex Transm Dis 35:2-7
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Godornes, Charmie; Leader, Brandon Troy; Molini, Barbara J et al. (2007) Quantitation of rabbit cytokine mRNA by real-time RT-PCR. Cytokine 38:1-7
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Mitchell, Samuel J; Engelman, Joseph; Kent, Charlotte K et al. (2006) Azithromycin-resistant syphilis infection: San Francisco, California, 2000-2004. Clin Infect Dis 42:337-45
LaFond, Rebecca E; Centurion-Lara, Arturo; Godornes, Charmie et al. (2006) TprK sequence diversity accumulates during infection of rabbits with Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum Nichols strain. Infect Immun 74:1896-906
Sun, Eileen S; Molini, Barbara J; Barrett, Lynn K et al. (2004) Subfamily I Treponema pallidum repeat protein family: sequence variation and immunity. Microbes Infect 6:725-37

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