Genetic variation at the vlsE locus of Borrelia burgdorferi within ticks and mice over the course of a single transmission cycle.

ABSTRACT: The Lyme disease spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, causes a persistent infection in the vertebrate host even though infected animals mount an active immune response against the spirochete. One strategy used by the spirochete to evade vertebrate host immunity is to vary the structure and expression of outer membrane antigens. The vlsE locus represents the best-studied example of antigenic variation in B. burgdorferi. During vertebrate host infection, recombination between the active vlsE locus and silent, partial vlsE copies leads to gene conversion events and the generation of novel alleles at the expression site. In the present study, we followed a population of B. burgdorferi organisms moving through vertebrate host and tick stages to complete one transmission cycle. The major goal of th

SUBMITTER: Ohnishi J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC165742 | biostudies-literature | 2003 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature