Abstract: Objective To investigate the value of protein biochip in the diagnosis of Lyme borreliosis. Methods The serum IgM and IgG antibodies against flagellin were detected by flagellin coated-and N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) modified-biochips in 82 patients with neuroborreliosis (NB),35 patients with erythema migrans (EM) and 44 normal controls.The results were compared with those from enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and Western blot.Results The levels of both IgM and IgG antibodies were significantly higher in the NB patients than those in the normal controls (P<0.001).The frequency of IgM antibody detection was significantly higher with biochip than that with ELISA (76.8% vs 63.4%, P<0.05).With the application of the combination of protein biochip,ELISA and Western blot,the detection rates of IgM and IgG antibodies against flagellin were increased in EM patients.The detection results of IgM antibodies were significantly correlated between protein biochip and ELISA in EM and NB patients. Conclusion The flagellin coated-and NHS modified-biochip could be potentially applied in clinical immunodiagnosis of Lyme borreliosis.

Key words: Lyme disease, Protein array analysis, Flagellin, Borrelia burgdorferi