Live imaging reveals a biphasic mode of dissemination of Borrelia burgdorferi within ticks.

ABSTRACT: Lyme disease is caused by transmission of the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi from ticks to humans. Although much is known about B. burgdorferi replication, the routes and mechanisms by which it disseminates within the tick remain unclear. To better understand this process, we imaged live, infectious B. burgdorferi expressing a stably integrated, constitutively expressed GFP reporter. Using isolated tick midguts and salivary glands, we observed B. burgdorferi progress through the feeding tick via what we believe to be a novel, biphasic mode of dissemination. In the first phase, replicating spirochetes, positioned at varying depths throughout the midgut at the onset of feeding, formed networks of nonmotile organisms that advanced toward the basolateral surface of the epithelium while adheri

SUBMITTER: Dunham-Ems SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2786795 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature