Publications by authors named "C S Brissette"
Article Synopsis
- - Lyme disease is spreading in the Great Plains, with small mammals like Peromyscus mice and southern red-backed voles being the primary hosts studied in northeastern North Dakota from 2012 to 2013.
- - Two tick species, Dermacentor variabilis and Ixodes scapularis, were found to infest these rodents, with I. scapularis being more common on Peromyscus and D. variabilis more abundant on M. gapperi.
- - Testing showed that both rodent species carried Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, and nymphs from infected ticks successfully transmitted the bacteria to mice, indicating high potential for Lyme disease spread through these small mammals.
The PilZ domain-containing protein, PlzA, is the only known cyclic di-GMP binding protein encoded by all Lyme disease spirochetes. PlzA has been implicated in the regulation of many borrelial processes, but the effector mechanism of PlzA was not previously known. Here, we report that PlzA can bind DNA and RNA and that nucleic acid binding requires c-di-GMP, with the affinity of PlzA for nucleic acids increasing as concentrations of c-di-GMP were increased.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe age-dependent loss of neuronal plasticity is a well-known phenomenon that is poorly understood. The loss of this capacity for axonal regeneration is emphasized following traumatic brain injury, which is a major cause of disability and death among adults in the US. We have previously shown the intrinsic capacity of magnocellular neurons within the supraoptic nucleus to undergo axonal regeneration following unilateral axotomization in an age-dependent manner.
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