The assertion that positive PCR tests do not mean that the bacterium is persisting alive in the body, due to the so-called persistence of nucleic acid (DNA) fragments, is totally false.
In fact, following the work of Nobel Prize winner Jules Hoffmann, it has been demonstrated that “naked” DNA, which may have escaped from a dead bacterium, is rapidly destroyed by enzymes in the tissues of mammals, including humans, and therefore cannot be detected by PCR.
Prof. Christmann’s “fossil DNA” theory, which suggests that a bacterium present in the body’s blood or tissues weeks or years ago is no longer present, but has nevertheless left a “memory” of its passage leading to a positive PCR, is antiscience.
In fact, it’s worth remembering that bacteria can be found in culture even after antibiotic treatment. The bacteria can evade the immune system, induce relative immunosuppression, and take refuge intracellularly, or in poorly vascularized sanctuaries that are less accessible to the immune system (as they are less irrigated by the bloodstream), such as fibrous tissue, e.g., tendons.
Citation
Lacout A, Perronne C. Lyme Disease, Tests and Treatment: A Review of the Controversy on the Ineffectiveness of Biological Tests and Proof of the Existence of a Chronic Form. Archives of Microbiology and Immunology. 2024;8:543-561.