In August 2015, a soldier returned from field exercises in Texas, USA, with nonspecific febrile illness. Culture and sequencing of spirochetes from peripheral blood diagnosed Borrelia turicatae infection. The patient recovered after receiving doxycycline. No illness occurred in asymptomatic soldiers potentially exposed to the vector tick and prophylactically given treatment.

The sequences of the complete linear chromosome and 7 linear plasmids of the relapsing fever spirochete Borrelia turicatae are presented in this report. The 925,547 bp of chromosome and 380,211 bp of plasmid sequence were predicted to contain a total of 1,131 open reading frames, with an average G+C content of 29.7%.

We analyzed HIV viral load (VL) and CD4 count changes, and antibody responses following MMR vaccination of individuals in the U.S. Military HIV Natural History Study cohort. Cases receiving at least one dose of MMR vaccine after HIV diagnosis were matched 1:2 to HIV-positive controls not receiving the vaccine. Baseline was defined as time of vaccination for cases and indexed and matched to the time post-HIV diagnosis for controls. Changes in CD4 count and VL at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months were compared between cases and controls using a general linear model. Available sera from cases were tested for MMR seropositivity at baseline and post-vaccination at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. Overall mean CD4 count change from baseline through 24 months was 20 (±23) cells/μL greater for cases than controls (p=0.39). Similar non-significant changes in CD4 cell count were seen in the subset of those not on HAART at baseline. VL changes were small and similar between groups (mean differential change −0.04 (±0.18) log10 copies/mL; p=0.84). Of 21 vaccinated participants with baseline serologic testing, 14 (67%) were reactive to measles, 19 (91%) to mumps, and 20 (95%) to rubella. Three (43%) of 7 participants nonreactive to measles developed measles IgG; for mumps, 1 (50%) of 2 developed mumps IgG; for rubella, 1 (100%) developed rubella IgG. MMR vaccination did not result in detrimental immunologic or virologic changes through 24 months post-vaccination.