An in vitro comparison of some biochemical and biological properties of California and Morocco isolates of Spiroplasma citri

Spiroplasma as a candidate agent for the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies

The recovery of a novel Spiroplasma sp. from brain tissues from sheep with scrapie, cervids with chronic wasting disease, and from patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease through passage through embryonated eggs has raised the issue of the role of Spiroplasma in the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE). In this review, we have inserted into an epidemiologic infection model evidence accumulated over the past 30 years showing involvement of Spiroplasma infection in TSE. These data support our hypothesis that a Spiroplasma sp. is the causal agent of TSE, although Koch's postulates must be fulfilled to definitively answer that question.

Nutritional requirements of two flower spiroplasmas and honeybee spiroplasma

A chemically defined medium (CC-494) was used to study the nutritional requirements of three spiroplasmas representing three distinct serogroups: flower spiroplasmas [Spiroplasma floricola and FS (SR-3)] and honeybee spiroplasma [HBS (AS-576)]. Glucose, fructose, and mannose were utilized by all three spiroplasmas. In addition, the honeybee spiroplasma could ferment trehalose, FS (SR-3) could ferment sucrose, and S. floricola could ferment trehalose, sucrose, and raffinose. The three spiroplasmas varied greatly in their requirements of amino acids for growth. S. floricola was the only strain that utilized arginine. HBS (AS-576) required at least one purine and one pyrimidine base (either free base or ribonucleoside) for growth, while both flower spiroplasmas grew with only one base in the medium. Oleic acid, cholesterol, and bovine serum albumin were essential to all three spiroplasmas. Palmitic acid, which was nonessential, promoted growth significantly.