The emergence of Lyme disease

Steere, Allen C.; Coburn, Jenifer; Glickstein, Lisa J.

doi:10.1172/jci200421681

Cited by 216 publications

(247 citation statements)

References 96 publications

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“…Borrelia burgdorferi, the agent of Lyme disease, causes a multiphasic disorder affecting the cutaneous, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and nervous systems (77). This spirochetal pathogen is transmitted to vertebrate hosts through the bite of infected Ixodes species ticks (8).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Overexpression of CsrA (BB0184) Alters the Morphology and Antigen Profiles ofBorrelia burgdorferi

et al. 2009

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Overexpression of CsrA (BB0184) Alters the Morphology and Antigen Profiles ofBorrelia burgdorferi

et al. 2009

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“…Although mosquitoes surpass ticks as vectors of public health importance, ticks transmit the greatest variety of microbial pathogens of any arthropod vector including established, emerging, and resurging infectious agents (Walker 1998, Childs and Paddock 2003, Jongejan and Uilenberg 2004, Telford and Goethert 2004, Dennis and Piesman 2005, Ginsberg and Stafford 2005, Hanincová et al 2006, Walker 2005. The hard-bodied tick Ixodes scapularis transmits causative agents of Lyme disease, human babesiosis, and human granulocytic anaplasmosis (Krause 2002, Steere et al 2004, Dumler et al 2007. I. scapularis saliva contains a complex mixture of pharmacologically active molecules that potentiate transmission of these pathogens by modulating host immune defenses, itch responses, and hemostasis (Zeidner et al 2002, Brossard and Wikel 2004, Steen et al 2006.…”

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confidence: 99%

Dermatologic Changes Induced by RepeatedIxodes scapularisBites and Implications for Prevention of Tick-Borne Infection

Krause

Grant‐Kels

Tahan

et al. 2009

Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases

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Previous studies in rodents and people have demonstrated that repeated tick exposure is associated with reduced Borrelia burgdorferi transmission but the mechanism of prevention remains unclear. We examined the acute histopathologic reactions to initial and repeated Ixodes scapularis bites in BALB/c mice and in people. Skin biopsies of BALB/c mice infested for the first time by I. scapularis nymphs revealed vascular dilatation and an accumulation of inflammatory cells adjacent to the bite site but absent at the site of tick attachment. Such changes would enhance tick-borne pathogen transmission. Mice reexposed to I. scapularis nymphs experienced a decrease in vascular dilatation and a marked increase in inflammatory cells at the site of tick attachment. Skin biopsies of people with attached I. scapularis nymphs revealed similar histologic patterns. These results indicate that cellular changes at the tick-dermal interface following I. scapularis attachment are likely to allow for successful transmission of tick-borne pathogens in non-tick-immune hosts and to inhibit tick-borne pathogen transmission in hosts that have developed tick immunity.

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“…In the eastern United States humans acquire LD when an infected Ixodes scapularis tick attaches and transmits the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. The recent surge in the incidence of LD, in the face of the commercial withdrawal of the human vaccine and a general reluctance to apply pesticides, prompts consideration of new approaches to reducing disease risk (6,7).…”

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confidence: 99%

An ecological approach to preventing human infection: Vaccinating wild mouse reservoirs intervenes in the Lyme disease cycle

Tsao

Wootton

Bunikis

et al. 2004

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

274

222

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Many pathogens, such as the agents of West Nile encephalitis and plague, are maintained in nature by animal reservoirs and transmitted to humans by arthropod vectors. Efforts to reduce disease incidence usually rely on vector control or immunization of humans. Lyme disease, for which no human vaccine is currently available, is a commonly reported vector-borne disease in North America and Europe. In a recently developed, ecological approach to disease prevention, we intervened in the natural cycle of the Lyme disease agent (Borrelia burgdorferi) by immunizing wild white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus), a reservoir host species, with either a recombinant antigen of the pathogen, outer surface protein A, or a negative control antigen in a repeated field experiment with paired experimental and control grids stratified by site. Outer surface protein A vaccination significantly reduced the prevalence of B. burgdorferi in nymphal blacklegged ticks (Ixodes scapularis) collected at the sites the following year in both experiments. The magnitude of the vaccine's effect at a given site correlated with the tick infection prevalence found on the control grid, which in turn correlated with mouse density. These data, as well as differences in the population structures of B. burgdorferi in sympatric ticks and mice, indicated that nonmouse hosts contributed more to infecting ticks than previously expected. Thus, where nonmouse hosts play a large role in infection dynamics, vaccination should be directed at additional species.

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The emergence of Lyme disease

Cited by 216 publications

References 96 publications

Overexpression of CsrA (BB0184) Alters the Morphology and Antigen Profiles ofBorrelia burgdorferi

Overexpression of CsrA (BB0184) Alters the Morphology and Antigen Profiles ofBorrelia burgdorferi

Dermatologic Changes Induced by RepeatedIxodes scapularisBites and Implications for Prevention of Tick-Borne Infection

An ecological approach to preventing human infection: Vaccinating wild mouse reservoirs intervenes in the Lyme disease cycle

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