Borrelia burgdorferi DnaA and the Nucleoid-Associated Protein EbfC Coordinate Expression of the Operon.

Borrelia burgdorferi, the spirochete agent of Lyme disease, has evolved within a consistent infectious cycle between tick and vertebrate hosts. The transmission of the pathogen from tick to vertebrate is characterized by rapid replication and a change in the outer surface protein profile. EbfC, a highly conserved nucleoid-associated protein, binds throughout the borrelial genome, affecting expression of many genes, including the Erp outer surface proteins.

The Lyme disease spirochete's BpuR DNA/RNA-binding protein is differentially expressed during the mammal-tick infectious cycle, which affects translation of the SodA superoxide dismutase.

When the Lyme disease spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, transfers from a feeding tick into a human or other vertebrate host, the bacterium produces vertebrate-specific proteins and represses factors needed for arthropod colonization. Previous studies determined that the B. burgdorferi BpuR protein binds to its own mRNA and autoregulates its translation, and also serves as co-repressor of erp transcription.

DNA Methylation by Restriction Modification Systems Affects the Global Transcriptome Profile in Borrelia burgdorferi.

Prokaryote restriction modification (RM) systems serve to protect bacteria from potentially detrimental foreign DNA. Recent evidence suggests that DNA methylation by the methyltransferase (MTase) components of RM systems can also have effects on transcriptome profiles. The type strain of the causative agent of Lyme disease, B31, possesses two RM systems with 6-methyladenosine (m6A) MTase activity, which are encoded by the gene located on linear plasmid lp25 and on lp56.

Transcriptomic insights on the virulence-controlling CsrA, BadR, RpoN, and RpoS regulatory networks in the Lyme disease spirochete.

Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, survives in nature through a cycle that alternates between ticks and vertebrates. To facilitate this defined lifestyle, B. burgdorferi has evolved a gene regulatory network that ensures transmission between those hosts, along with specific adaptations to niches within each host.

Zinc transporters YbtX and ZnuABC are required for the virulence of Yersinia pestis in bubonic and pneumonic plague in mice.

A number of bacterial pathogens require the ZnuABC Zinc (Zn) transporter and/or a second Zn transport system to overcome Zn sequestration by mammalian hosts. Previously we have shown that in addition to ZnuABC, Yersinia pestis possesses a second Zn transporter that involves components of the yersiniabactin (Ybt), siderophore-dependent iron transport system. Synthesis of the Ybt siderophore and YbtX, a member of the major facilitator superfamily, are both critical components of the second Zn transport system.

RNA-Seq of Borrelia burgdorferi in Multiple Phases of Growth Reveals Insights into the Dynamics of Gene Expression, Transcriptome Architecture, and Noncoding RNAs.

Borrelia burgdorferi, the agent of Lyme disease, differentially expresses numerous genes and proteins as it cycles between mammalian hosts and tick vectors. Insights on regulatory mechanisms have been provided by earlier studies that examined B. burgdorferi gene expression patterns during cultivation.

Direct PCR of Intact Bacteria (Colony PCR).

This protocol describes an efficient method for screening intact bacteria for the presence of desired DNA sequences using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). This method is commonly referred to as colony PCR. © 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Intracellular Concentrations of Borrelia burgdorferi Cyclic Di-AMP Are Not Changed by Altered Expression of the CdaA Synthase.

The second messenger nucleotide cyclic diadenylate monophosphate (c-di-AMP) has been identified in several species of Gram positive bacteria and Chlamydia trachomatis. This molecule has been associated with bacterial cell division, cell wall biosynthesis and phosphate metabolism, and with induction of type I interferon responses by host cells. We demonstrate that B.

Apparent role for Borrelia burgdorferi LuxS during mammalian infection.

The Lyme disease spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, controls protein expression patterns during its tick-mammal infection cycle. Earlier studies demonstrated that B. burgdorferi synthesizes 4,5-dihydroxy-2,3-pentanedione (autoinducer-2 [AI-2]) and responds to AI-2 by measurably changing production of several infection-associated proteins.