Isolated from a patient with secondary syphilis

Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum. This organism is the causative agent of endemic and venereal syphilis. This sexual transmitted disease was first discovered in Europe at the end of the fifteenth century, however, the causative agent was not identified until 1905. At one time syphilis was the third most commonly reported communicable disease in the USA. Syphilis is characterized by multiple clinical stages and long periods of latent, asymptomatic infection. Although effective therapies have been available since the introduction of penicillin, syphilis remains a global health problem. Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum SS14. Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum SS14 was isolated in 1977 from a patient with secondary syphilis. This strain is less susceptible than the Nichols strain for a number of antibiotics and will be used for comparative analysis.