Cell culture
Cell culture isolation can also be used for the detection and isolation of "Neorickettsia risticii", although it is a more time-consuming technique that requires specialized equipment and is not routinely used as a diagnostic method. "N. risticii" is an obligate intracellular microorganism and as such is more technically difficult to culture, isolate, and ship to a diagnostic laboratory. Cell culture isolation detects the presence of live bacteria and can be used to isolate bacteria from an infected animal, the environment, or a parasitic host. Strain variation among isolates can be determined by identifying surface antigens or by performing whole-genome sequencing. Molecular analysis surface antigens has found significant genetic and phenotypic variation in strains of "N. risticii", these variations may contribute to vaccination failures.