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Analysis Of The Role Of Outer Surface Protein C (Ospc) In Borrelia Burgdorferi Pathogenesis, Delacy Rhodes
Analysis Of The Role Of Outer Surface Protein C (Ospc) In Borrelia Burgdorferi Pathogenesis, Delacy Rhodes
Theses and Dissertations
Lyme disease is an emerging infection that is caused by the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato complex. These bacteria exist in nature through an enzootic life cycle involving Ixodes ticks and various reservoir hosts. One way that this bacterium adapts to the different hosts in the enzootic cycle is through the expression of outer surface protein C (OspC). OspC is a surface exposed lipoprotein encoded on circular plasmid 26 that forms homodimers on the bacterial surface and has distinct conserved and variable portions of sequence. When ospC is deleted, the spirochetes are unable to cause mammalian infection although the mechanism of …
Genetic Manipulation Of The Relapsing Fever Spirochete Borrelia Hermsii Permits Novel Investigation Into The Role Of Factor H Binding In Borrelial Virulence, Lindy Fine
Theses and Dissertations
Borrelia hermsii, an etiologic agent of tick-borne relapsing fever, binds negative complement regulator factor H (FH) via its FhbA protein. Direct demonstration of the role of FhbA in the disease process has been hindered by the lack of genetic manipulation systems for the relapsing fever Borrelia. Here, we demonstrate successful generation of a B. hermsii strain YOR fhbA deletion mutant (Bh YORΔfhbA) that constitutively produces green fluorescent protein (GFP). Genetic manipulation did not affect growth rate or plasmid composition. Bh YORΔfhbA lost factor H-binding and C3b-inactivation capabilities, but retained resistance to killing in human serum and infectivity in mice. Stable …