Glycerophosphodiester Phosphodiesterase Gene (
 glpQ
 ) of
 Borrelia lonestari
 Identified as a Target for Differentiating
 Borrelia
 Species Associated with Hard Ticks (Acari:Ixodidae)

Bacon, Rendi Murphree; Pilgard, Mark A.; Johnson, Barbara J. B.; Raffel, Sandra J.; Schwan, Tom G.

doi:10.1128/jcm.42.5.2326-2328.2004

Cited by 35 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Although sequence divergence between isolates could account for our inability to detect bptA homologs in relapsing fever borreliae, that bptA may be specific to Lyme borreliosis organisms is supported by microarray analysis of the B. hermsii genome; namely, no hybridization signal for any lp25-encoded gene, including bptA, was detected on Bb B31-based microarrays (51). Moreover, bptA was not detected in B. lonestari, the putative agent of Southern tick-associated rash illness (28) (data not shown), further supporting the contention that B. lonestari is more closely related to relapsing fever strains than to Lyme borreliosis agents (52). Taken together, these data imply that strong selective pressure(s) is operative for maintaining bptA among Lyme borreliosis strains in nature.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 55%

bptA(bbe16) is essential for the persistence of the Lyme disease spirochete,Borrelia burgdorferi, in its natural tick vector

Revel

Blevins

Almazán

et al. 2005

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

109

127

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Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb), the agent of Lyme disease, is a zoonotic spirochetal bacterium that depends on arthropod (Ixodes ticks) and mammalian (rodent) hosts for its persistence in nature. The quest to identify borrelial genes responsible for Bb's parasitic dependence on these two diverse hosts has been hampered by limitations in the ability to genetically manipulate virulent strains of Bb. Despite this constraint, we report herein the inactivation and genetic complementation of a linear plasmid-25-encoded gene (bbe16) to assess its role in the virulence, pathogenesis, and survival of Bb during its natural life cycle. bbe16 was found to potentiate the virulence of Bb in the murine model of Lyme borreliosis and was essential for the persistence of Bb in Ixodes scapularis ticks. As such, we have renamed bbe16 a gene encoding borrelial persistence in ticks (bpt)A. Although protease accessibility experiments suggested that BptA as a putative lipoprotein is surface-exposed on the outer membrane of Bb, the molecular mechanism(s) by which BptA promotes Bb persistence within its tick vector remains to be elucidated. BptA also was shown to be highly conserved (>88% similarity and >74% identity at the deduced amino acid levels) in all Bb sensu lato strains tested, suggesting that BptA may be widely used by Lyme borreliosis spirochetes for persistence in nature. Given Bb's absolute dependence on and intimate association with its arthropod and mammalian hosts, BptA should be considered a virulence factor critical for Bb's overall parasitic strategy.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 55%

bptA(bbe16) is essential for the persistence of the Lyme disease spirochete,Borrelia burgdorferi, in its natural tick vector

Revel

Blevins

Almazán

et al. 2005

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

109

127

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“…For example, in 2001, when B. lonestari, an RF group Borrelia species found in A. americanum, was tentatively linked to a case of southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI) (5), HTTKP testing was modified to include testing for B. lonestari (21)(22)(23)(24). However, epidemiological studies of STARI patients did not support the hypothesized link between STARI and B. lonestari (6,7,25), so targeting of this Borrelia species in the HTTKP ended in 2009.…”

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confidence: 99%

Borrelia burgdorferi Not Confirmed in Human-Biting Amblyomma americanum Ticks from the Southeastern United States

et al. 2015

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The predominant human-biting tick throughout the southeastern United States is Amblyomma americanum. Its ability to transmit pathogens causing Lyme disease-like illnesses is a subject of ongoing controversy. Results of previous testing by the Department of Defense Human Tick Test Kit Program and other laboratories indicated that it is highly unlikely that A. americanum transmits any pathogen that causes Lyme disease. In contrast, a recent publication by Clark and colleagues (K. L. Clark, B. Leydet, and S. Hartman, Int. J. Med. Sci. 10:915-931, 2013) reported detection of Lyme group Borrelia in A. americanum using a nested-flagellin-gene PCR. We evaluated this assay by using it and other assays to test 1,097 A. americanum ticks collected from humans. Using the Clark assay, in most samples we observed nonspecific amplification and nonrepeatability of results on subsequent testing of samples. Lack of reaction specificity and repeatability is consistent with mispriming, likely due to high primer concentrations and low annealing temperatures in this protocol. In six suspect-positive samples, Borrelia lonestari was identified by sequencing of an independent gene region; this is not a Lyme group spirochete and is not considered zoonotic. B. burgdorferi was weakly amplified from one pool using some assays, but not others, and attempts to sequence the amplicon of this pool failed, as did attempts to amplify and sequence B. burgdorferi from the five individual samples comprising this pool. Therefore, B. burgdorferi was not confirmed in any sample. Our results do not support the hypothesis that A. americanum ticks are a vector for Lyme group Borrelia infections. T he vectors and etiologic agents of Lyme-like diseases in the southeastern United States are a subject of ongoing controversy (1, 2). In the United States, most Lyme disease is caused by infection with Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, a bacterium that is phylogenetically within the B. burgdorferi sensu lato "Lyme group" of spirochetes vectored by hard ticks. The Lyme group also includes genospecies implicated as the etiologic agents of Lyme disease in other geographic regions, including B. garinii, B. afzelii, B. spielmanii, and B. valaisiana in Europe. Additional Lyme group genospecies continue to be described. In the United States, these include B. americana, B. andersonii, and B. carolinensis, all of unknown pathogenicity, and B. bissettii, which has been implicated in cases of human illness (1). In contrast to the Lyme group, the relapsing fever (RF) group spirochetes, many of which are vectored by soft ticks, are a separate phylogenetic cluster that includes agents associated with RF disease in humans. In the United States, genospecies within the RF group include B. hermsii, B. turicatae, and B. parkeri, vectored by soft ticks, and B. miyamotoi, B. davisii, and B. lonestari, vectored by hard ticks. B. hermsii is the main cause of tick-borne relapsing fever in the United States; B. turicatae and B. parkeri have also been associated with human disease (3). B...

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“…Several sets of primers were screened by blasting and aligning with the few sequences available for North American B. miyamotoi (Asian and European strains appear to be divergent). Nested PCR was performed using the the glpQ primers outlined in Bacon et al (2004) and the speciÞc primers for B. miyamotoi from Ullmann et al (2005). We slightly modiÞed a set of outer primers from Schwan et al (2005) designed for relapsing fever Borrelia flaB, and paired it with modiÞed primers from Fukanaga et al (1996) for the American sequence of flaB.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High-Prevalence Borrelia miyamotoi Infection Among Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) in Tennessee

et al. 2010

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During spring and fall 2009, 60 wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) harvested by Tennessee hunters were surveyed for Borrelia spp. by sampling their blood, tissue, and attached ticks. In both seasons, 70% of turkeys were infested with juvenile Amblyomma americanum; one spring turkey hosted an adult female Ixodes brunneus. Polymerase chain reaction assays followed by DNA sequencing indicated that 58% of the turkeys were positive for the spirochete Borrelia miyamotoi, with tissue testing positive more frequently than blood (P = 0.015). Sequencing of the 16S-23S rRNA intergenic spacer indicated > or = 99% similarity to previously published sequences of the North American strain of this spirochete. Positive turkeys were present in both seasons and from all seven middle Tennessee counties sampled. No ticks from the turkeys tested positive for any Borrelia spp. This is the first report of B. miyamotoi in birds; the transmission pathways and epidemiological significance of this high-prevalence spirochetal infection remain uncertain.

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Glycerophosphodiester Phosphodiesterase Gene ( glpQ ) of Borrelia lonestari Identified as a Target for Differentiating Borrelia Species Associated with Hard Ticks (Acari:Ixodidae)

Cited by 35 publications

References 17 publications

bptA(bbe16) is essential for the persistence of the Lyme disease spirochete,Borrelia burgdorferi, in its natural tick vector

bptA(bbe16) is essential for the persistence of the Lyme disease spirochete,Borrelia burgdorferi, in its natural tick vector

Borrelia burgdorferi Not Confirmed in Human-Biting Amblyomma americanum Ticks from the Southeastern United States

High-Prevalence Borrelia miyamotoi Infection Among Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) in Tennessee

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