Arthritogenicity of Borrelia burgdorferi and Borrelia garinii: Comparison of Infection in Mice

Abstract

Arthritogenicity, as determined by joint swelling and synovial histology, was compared between or within two Borrelia genospecies that cause Lyme arthritis in humans. The spirochete burden in bladder tissue (a site of spirochete persistence) was documented by quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and immune responses were analyzed. In C3H/HeJ mice, three B. burgdorferi isolates and two of the three B. garinii isolates induced severe arthritis and swelling. Previous designation as invasive or noninvasive B. garinii, or RNA spacer type of B. burgdorferi did not determine arthritis severity induced by isolates. Compared with the other five isolates, the B. garinii PBi isolate induced significantly less arthritis, a lower humoral immune response, and persisted at a much lower level in bladder tissue. However, B. garinii PBi isolates induced similar Borrelia antigen-specific inflammatory T cell responses from the local draining lymph node. Thus, diverse B. burgdorferi and B. garinii isolates were highly arthritogenic in immune competent mice.

Blood treatment of Lyme borreliae demonstrates the mechanism of CspZ ‐mediated complement evasion to promote systemic infection in vertebrate hosts

“…Similar to previous findings (Isogai et al, ), we did not detect spirochetes in the blood during infection (Figure S9), reiterating the inability of Lyme borreliae to induce high levels of bacteraemia in vertebrate animals (Steere et al, ). Unlike a previous study detecting spirochetes in the liver and heart of Borrelia garinii ‐infected quail (Isogai et al, ), we did not observe B. burgdorferi colonization at these sites, possibly reflecting strain‐specific tissue tropism (Figure S9; Craig‐Mylius, Lee, Jones, & Glickstein, ; Jones et al, ; Wang, xvan Dam, Schwartz, & Dankert, ). We found that CspZ‐mediated FH‐binding activity facilitates spirochete colonization at the quail inoculation site and brain, which reveals the role of a B. burgdorferi protein in promoting avian host competence at the first time (Figure ).…”

Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato Species in Europe Induce Diverse Immune Responses against C 6 Peptides in Infected Mice

“…In our study, the measured C 6 responses against B. burgdorferi sensu stricto N40, B. garinii PBi, and B. afzelii PKo support the experimental data, which show that B. burgdorferi sensu stricto N40 successfully induces infection and clinical symptoms in dogs (45,46) and, furthermore, B. garinii PBi and B. afzelii PKo in mice (4,8). In addition, B. afzelii PKo and B. garinii PBi have been isolated from humans and detected in patients (11,54) and are therefore recommended for human serodiagnosis (14).…”

Outer surface protein polymorphisms linked to host‐spirochete association in Lyme borreliae

“…Additionally, upon infection, Lyme borreliae species/strains differ in their ability to survive in the bloodstream or disseminate to distal tissues in Mus musculus (mice) or Peromyscus leucopus (white‐footed mice) (Anderson et al , ; Barthold et al , ; Norris et al , ; Wang et al , ; Barbour et al , ; Baum et al , ; Chan et al , ). Consistent with this observation, the ability of hematogenous dissemination by these spirochetes and the severity of manifestations vary among spirochete species and strains during infection in humans (Anderson et al , ; Wang et al , ; Carlsson et al , ; Logar et al , ; Dykhuizen et al , ; Wormser et al , ; Craig‐Mylius et al , ). These findings elucidate a spirochete strain‐to‐strain variation in the host‐specific infectivity.…”

“…In support of this association, when different vertebrate hosts are infected by Lyme borreliae via ticks or needles, some spirochete species/strains preferentially infect small rodents (Matuschka and Spielman, ; Hu et al , ; Wang et al , ; Derdakova et al , ; Richter et al , ; Hanincova et al , ; Craig‐Mylius et al , ; Tonetti et al , ; Rynkiewicz et al , ), while others more efficiently colonize avian hosts (e.g. pheasant, Coturnix quail and American robins) (Isogai et al , ; Kurtenbach et al , ; Ginsberg et al , ).…”