Abstract

Dark-field microscopy has been increasingly applied in diagnostics in recent years, for example in Lyme borreliosis, due to the growing concerns about the diagnostic utility of standard serological tests. Although the diagnostic value of microscopic methods is still debated due to the lack of proper clinical testing and the definition of the diagnostic cutoff levels, it is important that the spirochetes causing the disease can be visualized from body fluids via dark-field investigation. Additionally, a specific identification of Borrelia is still not routinely possible, visual observation is usually fortified with additional PCR investigations. We are publishing the pictures from the first-time application of an enhanced dark-field illumination technique that improves the resolution and picture quality of digital recordings. The same illumination setup, combined with a novel live staining of Borrelia burgdorferi with cleaned, FITC-labelled anti-Borrelia antibodies, has produced remarkable recordings of the same spirochetes, in natural motion. All experiments were performed on remnant samples of DualDur kit laboratory investigations.