Tick Testing Information

Clongen Labs offers Tick Testing for Lyme Disease by Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). This amplification assay of total tick DNA detects a conserved region of the recA gene in Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent for Lyme Disease. Both dog ticks and deer ticks tend to carry the Lyme bacteria in their digestive system.

In addition to Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi), ticks can transmit other species of Borrelia, and other disease causing organisms such as Babesia, Rickettsia, Bartonella, and Anaplasma.

Instructions for shipping live or dead ticks

If the tick is alive, please make sure that you use two zip lock bags or a solid container with a tight seal to prevent losing the tick in transit. It is highly recommended to wear gloves when removing the tick from the skin to avoid infection by infected ticks. These are very helpful pages with illustrations on removing ticks:

http://www.tickencounter.org/prevention/tick_removal 

Do not use tape to immobilize the tick or ticks you captured.

Do not use formalin to preserve captured ticks as it will have a negative impact on PCR test results.

We can pool up to 4 ticks together for testing. This is not recommended for ticks found on separate individuals. When sending multiple ticks, please specify if the ticks should be tested together or separately.

Fill out the Tick Submission Form by downloading from the “Tick Submission Form” link on the left menu bar.

Include the patient’s name, address, phone number, e-mail address and, if you wish, your physicians name and contact information if you would like a copy of the report faxed to him/her. We will send you the final report in PDF format and you will receive a hard copy of the report along with a receipt.

Include a $75 check with the tick or an authorized credit card form.

Please call us if you have any questions:877-256-6436 (CLONGEN) or 301-916-0173