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      Reviewing molecular adaptations of Lyme borreliosis spirochetes in the context of reproductive fitness in natural transmission cycles

      review-article
      1 , 2 , *
      Veterinary Research
      EDP Sciences
      Lyme borreliosis, R0, vector-borne, tick

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          Abstract

          Lyme borreliosis (LB) is caused by a group of pathogenic spirochetes – most often Borrelia burgdorferi, B. afzelii, and B. garinii – that are vectored by hard ticks in the Ixodes ricinus-persulcatus complex, which feed on a variety of mammals, birds, and lizards. Although LB is one of the best-studied vector-borne zoonoses, the annual incidence in North America and Europe leads other vector-borne diseases and continues to increase. What factors make the LB system so successful, and how can researchers hope to reduce disease risk – either through vaccinating humans or reducing the risk of contacting infected ticks in nature? Discoveries of molecular interactions involved in the transmission of LB spirochetes have accelerated recently, revealing complex interactions among the spirochete-tick-vertebrate triad. These interactions involve multiple, and often redundant, pathways that reflect the evolution of general and specific mechanisms by which the spirochetes survive and reproduce. Previous reviews have focused on the molecular interactions or population biology of the system. Here molecular interactions among the LB spirochete, its vector, and vertebrate hosts are reviewed in the context of natural maintenance cycles, which represent the ecological and evolutionary contexts that shape these interactions. This holistic system approach may help researchers develop additional testable hypotheses about transmission processes, interpret laboratory results, and guide development of future LB control measures and management.

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          Most cited references302

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          Genomic sequence of a Lyme disease spirochaete, Borrelia burgdorferi.

          The genome of the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi B31, the aetiologic agent of Lyme disease, contains a linear chromosome of 910,725 base pairs and at least 17 linear and circular plasmids with a combined size of more than 533,000 base pairs. The chromosome contains 853 genes encoding a basic set of proteins for DNA replication, transcription, translation, solute transport and energy metabolism, but, like Mycoplasma genitalium, it contains no genes for cellular biosynthetic reactions. Because B. burgdorferi and M. genitalium are distantly related eubacteria, we suggest that their limited metabolic capacities reflect convergent evolution by gene loss from more metabolically competent progenitors. Of 430 genes on 11 plasmids, most have no known biological function; 39% of plasmid genes are paralogues that form 47 gene families. The biological significance of the multiple plasmid-encoded genes is not clear, although they may be involved in antigenic variation or immune evasion.
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            The ecology of infectious disease: effects of host diversity and community composition on Lyme disease risk.

            The extent to which the biodiversity and community composition of ecosystems affect their functions is an issue that grows ever more compelling as human impacts on ecosystems increase. We present evidence that supports a novel function of vertebrate biodiversity, the buffering of human risk of exposure to Lyme-disease-bearing ticks. We tested the Dilution Effect model, which predicts that high species diversity in the community of tick hosts reduces vector infection prevalence by diluting the effects of the most competent disease reservoir, the ubiquitous white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus). As habitats are degraded by fragmentation or other anthropogenic forces, some members of the host community disappear. Thus, species-poor communities tend to have mice, but few other hosts, whereas species-rich communities have mice, plus many other potential hosts. We demonstrate that the most common nonmouse hosts are relatively poor reservoirs for the Lyme spirochete and should reduce the prevalence of the disease by feeding, but rarely infecting, ticks. By accounting for nearly every host species' contribution to the number of larval ticks fed and infected, we show that as new host species are added to a depauperate community, the nymphal infection prevalence, a key risk factor, declines. We identify important "dilution hosts" (e.g., squirrels), characterized by high tick burdens, low reservoir competence, and high population density, as well as "rescue hosts" (e.g., shrews), which are capable of maintaining high disease risk when mouse density is low. Our study suggests that the preservation of vertebrate biodiversity and community composition can reduce the incidence of Lyme disease.
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              Regulation and Stability of Host-Parasite Population Interactions: I. Regulatory Processes

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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Vet Res
                vetres
                Veterinary Research
                EDP Sciences
                0928-4249
                1297-9716
                Mar-Apr 2009
                16 April 2009
                16 April 2009
                : 40
                : 2 , Adaptative strategies of vector-borne pathogens to vectorial transmission ( publisher-idID: vetres/2009/02 )
                : 36
                Affiliations
                [1 ]simpleDepartment of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University , East Lansing MI 48864 USA
                [2 ]simpleDepartment of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, Michigan State University , East Lansing MI 48864 , USA
                Author notes
                [* ]Corresponding author: tsao@ 123456msu.edu
                Article
                10.1051/vetres/2009019 v09095
                10.1051/vetres/2009019
                2701186
                19368764
                e2af87ab-5bfc-4c96-a8c8-3e9d0a238de1
                © INRA, EDP Sciences, 2009

                This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial License ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any noncommercial medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

                History
                : 11 September 2008
                : 15 April 2009
                Page count
                Figures: 4, Tables: 2, Equations: 1, References: 302, Pages: 42
                Categories
                Review Article

                Veterinary medicine
                r0,vector-borne,tick,lyme borreliosis
                Veterinary medicine
                r0, vector-borne, tick, lyme borreliosis

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