National reference laboratory of vector-borne infections, listeria and leptospires

National reference laboratory of vector-borne infections, listeria and leptospires

 Head, National reference vector-borne infections, listeria and leptospires laboratory
Assist. Prof. Iva Trifonova, PhD

 

Laimska staff Laymska staff2 Laymska staff3

Staff:
Assist. Prof. Teodora Gladnishka, PhD
Assist. Prof. Elitsa Panayotova, PhD
Assist. Prof. Evgenia Taseva, PhD
Dr. Kim Ngoc
Vladislava Ivanova, biologist
Iva Vladimirova, biologist
Silvia Damyanova, laboratory worker
Tanya Drambozova, laboratory worker

National Reference Laboratory (NRL) of Vector-borne pathogens, listeria and leptospires was established in 2007 by combining NRL of leptospires, borelia and listeria and laboratory of arboviruses. NRL of borrelia, leptospires and listeria was founded in 1953 and recognized as the Reference laboratory for leptospirosis since 1960. From 1993 to 2021 the laboratory is headed by Prof. Iva Christova, M.D., Sci. This period is associated with conducting active research into the etiology, epidemiology and diagnosis of Lyme disease and viral haemorrhagic fevers.

The NRL performed routine and confirmatory diagnostics of mosquito-borne infections –  West Nile virus, Dengue, Yellow fever, Chikungunya and Zika virus infections (PCR and serology), tick-borne infections - Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (RT-PCR and serology), Tick-borne encephalitis (RT-PCR and serology) and Lyme disease (PCR and serology - routine diagnosis by ELISA and confirmatory by immunoblot) as well as diagnostics of hantavirus infections (hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome), lymphocytic choriomeningitis, leptospirosis and listeriosis

The laboratory organizes and conducts a course on Etiology, epidemiology, clinic, diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease and other bacterial and viral vector-transmitted infections; leptospirosis and listeriosis, as well as individual trainings of PhD students and specialists in microbiology.

NRL Tick/vector-borne infections annually passes two external international quality controls for the diagnostic activities of Lyme borreliosis and West Nile fever, conducted by the Institute of Standardization and documentation of the medical laboratories INSTAND, Germany. The laboratory participates in the National External Quality Control of Serological Diagnostics of Lyme Borreliosis of the laboratory network in the country, conducted by NCIPD.

In NRL Tick / vector borne infections, listeria and leptospires is carried out active research, and the most significant scientific topics in the last five years are:

  1. Viral load, cytokines and serum antibody levels depending on the clinical severity of COVID-19 infection. Funded by Bulgarian Fund for scientific investigations /№ КП-06-ДК1/7 from 29.03.2021 (2021-2023)
  2. Role of migratory and native wild birds as reservoirs of vector-transmitted infections in humans. Funded by Bulgarian Fund for scientific investigations /№ КП-06-Н33/16 from 21.12.2019 (2019-2022)
  3. Studies on the etiological causes and the risk of spreading mosquito-transmitted infections in Bulgaria. Funded by Bulgarian Fund for scientific investigations/№ ДН03/15 from19.12.2016 г. (2016-2019)
  4. Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever vaccine (acronym: CCHF vaccine). Consortium – Sweden, France, Germany, UK, USA, Bulgaria, Turkey, Kosovo, Tajikistan. Bulgarian team leader: Iva Christova. Funded by EU Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement 0732732 (2017-2023)
  5. National Programme for prophylaxis and control of vector-borne transmissive infections in humans in Republic of Bulgaria, 2014-2018. Funded by national budget of Bulgaria.

The results of the scientific work of the laboratory in the last five years are presented in the following publications in international and national refereed journals:

  1. Christova I, Panayotova E, Groschup M, Trifonova I, Tchakarova S, Andrada Sas M. High seroprevalence for Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus in ruminants in the absence of reported human cases in many regions of Bulgaria. Exp Appl Acarol 2018, 75: 227-234 Q3, IF 760(2017).
  2. Christova I, Trifonova I, Panayotova E, Dimitrov H, Gladnishka. Molecular detection identification of Puumala orthohantavirus in Bulgaria. Infection, Genetics and Evolution. 2019, 70, 42-44. Q2, IF 2.611(2018)
  3. Baymakova M, I. Christova, E. Panayotova, I. Trifonova, A. Chobanov, I. Daskalov, G. Popov, K. Plochev. West Nile virus infection with neurological disorders: A case report and a brief review of the situation in Bulgaria. Acta Clin. Croat. 2019; 58:546-549. Q3, IF 0.366(2018)
  4. Christova I, Panayotova E, Trifonova I, Taseva E, Gladnishka T, Ivanova V. Serologic evidence of widespread Toscana virus infection in Bulgaria. J Infect Public Health 2020 Feb; 13(2):164-166 Q1, IF 2.487(2018)
  5. Christova, I., A. Papa, I. Trifonova, E. Panayotova, S. Pappa, O. Mikov. West Nile virus lineage 2 in humans and mosquitoes in Bulgaria, 2018–2019. Journal of Clinical Virology, 2020, 127: 104365. Q2, IF 2,777
  6. Pishmisheva-Peleva, M., Christova, I., Kotsev, St., Trifonova, I., Panayotova, E., Michaylova, R., Petrov, A., Popov, G. Stoicheva, M. West nile fever in Bulgaria - Clinical features - Analysis of a 2-year period. General Medicine, 2020, 22 (3), pp. 8-15. Q4, IF 0.04
  7. Christova I, Trifonova I, Gladnishka T, Dragusheva E, Popov G, Ivanova V. Viral load and antibody levels in patients with COVID-19. GSC Advanced Research and Reviews 2021, 08(3), 10-18.
  8. Christova I., I. Trifonova, E. Panayotova, H. Dimitrov, T. Gladnishka, V. Mitkovska, E. Taseva, I. Gergova, Hantaviruses in Small Mammals in Two Regions in Bulgaria. Acta Zoologica Bulgarica, 202173 (1), March 2021: 119-123. Q4, IF 0, 448 (2021)
  9. Nikolova M, Y. Todorova, R. Emilova, I. Trifonova, T. Gladnishka, N. Petrova-Yancheva, T. Cherveniakova, E. Dragusheva, G. Popov, I. Christova. Induction of humoral and cellular immune responses to COVID-19 mRNA and vector vaccines: A prospective cohort study in Bulgarian healthcare workers. J Med Virol 2022, 94, 2008-2018. Q1, IF 2, 327 (2020)
  10. Trifonova I, Christova I, Ivanova-Aleksandrova N. Gladnishka T, Ivanova V, Panayotova E, Taseva E, Dimitrov D, Marinov M, Kamenov G, Zehtindjiev P. Survey of Borrelia burgdorferisensu lato and West Nile fever virus in wild birds in Bulgaria. Biologia(2022) 2022 77(3):3519–3524, Q3, IF 1,65(2021)
  11. Trifonova I, I. Christova, E. Panayotova, T. Gladnishka. RT-PCR systems for detection of arboviruses. Probl. Inf. Paras. Dis. 2018, 46 (1):25-28. Q4
  12. Christova I., Trifonova I., Panayotova E., Tchakarova S., Gladnishka T., Taseva E., Seroprevalence study for West Nile virus in Bulgaria, Inf. Paras. Dis. 2018, 46 (1):29-31. Q4
  13. Christova I, E. Panayotova, I. Trifonova, E. Taseva, T. Gladnishka. Unexpectedly high number of West Nile neuroinvasive diseases in Bulgaria in 2018. Probl. Inf. Paras. Dis. 2018, 46 (2):16-19. Q4
  14. Taseva E, I. Christova, E. Panayotova, I. Trifonova. Investigations of murine rodents for the presence of leptospira DNA by nested PCR. Probl. Inf. Paras. Dis. 2018, 47 (1):25-29. Q4
  15. Panayotova E, I. Christova, I. Trifonova, Taseva, T. Gladnishka, V. Ivanova. Seroprevalence of West Nile virus in Bulgaria, 2018. Probl. Inf. Parasit. Dis. 47, 2019, 2, 15-17. Q4
  16. Taseva E, I. Christova, E. Panayotova, I. Trifonova, T. Gladnishka, V. Ivanova. Analysis of circulating strains, causing invasive listeriosis in Bulgaria, 2010-2019. Probl. Infect. Paras. Dis. 48, 2020, 2, 27-34.
  17. Ivanova-Aleksandrova , I. Christova, D. Dimitrov, MP Marinov, Panayotova E, I. Trifonova, E. Taseva, T. Gladnishka, G. Kamenov, M. Ilieva, P. Zehtindjiev. Records on Ixodid ticks on wild birds in Bulgaria. Probl. Inf. Paras. Dis. 49, 2021, 2: 35-39.
  18. Gladnishka T., I. Christova, I. Trifonova, V. Ivanova, E. Panayotova, E. Taseva. Study on ticks removed from patients for infection with Borrelia burgdorferi and their number depending on temperature and precipitation in 2016-2021. Probl. Inf. Paras. Dis.  2022, 50 (1): 32-36.

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