PCR diagnostics Neoehrlichia mikurensis

This bachelor thesis focuses on the development of a new diagnostic method for the detection of Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis in ticks. The new method was developed based on the unavailability of a suitable diagnostic method of N. mikurensis as well as the lack of accurate data about infection frequency of ticks by the pathogen Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis in the scientific literature. In the theoretical part, I deal with general information about ticks and their transmitted diseases, which can be bacterial, viral or protozoal. The diseases described in my bachelor thesis are borreliosis, tick-borne encephalitis, ehrlichiosis, bartonellosis, tularemia and babesiosis. Special attention is dedicated to newly detected causative agents of neoehrlichiosis. Various type of techniques have been used during the development of the new diagnostic method, such as polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR), cloning, sequencing and agarose gel electrophoresis (ELFO). These methods are complemented by a large number of different laboratory procedures, such as DNA isolation, minipreparation of plasmid DNA, gel purification of DNA, and bacterial stock solution preparation. Statistical evaluation was performed based on the analysis of mixed samples of 10 ticks, using the PCR method. A total of 1 390 ticks were tested during 2018