Resolution of experimental and tick-borne Borrelia burgdorferi infection in mice by passive, but not active immunization using recombinant OspC.
Vaccination with outer surface protein A (OspA) of Borrelia burgdorferi prevents subsequent infection and disease in both laboratory animals and humans with high efficacy. OspA-based immunity, however, does not affect established infection due to the loss of OspA expression in the vertebrate host. We show here that repeated passive transfer of mouse and/or rabbit immune sera to recombinant GST-OspC fusion protein resulted in a dose-dependent resolution (1) of fully established arthritis and carditis as well as infection in needle-challenged C.B-17 SCID and (2) of infection in both experimentally and tick-infected BALB/c mice. Unexpectedly, active immunization of disease-susceptible AKR/N mice with GST-OspC only led to prevention but not resolution of disease and infection, in spite of high serum titers of OspC-specific Ab and the expression of ospC in tissue-derived spirochetes. The data suggest that the efficacy of OspC antibody-mediated immunity depends on the immunological history of the recipient and/or environment-dependent regulation of OspC surface expression by spirochetes in vivo. The results encourage further attempts to develop therapeutic vaccination protocols against Lyme disease.
Zhong
W
W
Max-Planck-Institut für Immunbiologie, Freiburg, Germany.
Gern
L
L
Stehle
T
T
Museteanu
C
C
Kramer
M
M
Wallich
R
R
Simon
M M
MM
D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology*; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D000954:Antigens, Surface / Q000235:genetics; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D001428:Bacterial Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D015748:Borrelia burgdorferi Group / Q000276:immunology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D005982:Glutathione Transferase / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D007116:Immunization, Passive / Q000379:methods*; D007700:Kinetics; D008074:Lipoproteins; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000517:prevention & control*; D051379:Mice; D008806:Mice, Inbred AKR; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D016513:Mice, SCID; D011817:Rabbits; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D013987:Ticks; D014611:Vaccination / Q000379:methods*; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic / Q000276:immunology*
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D000954:Antigens, Surface; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D001428:Bacterial Vaccines; D008074:Lipoproteins; C072045:OspA protein; C079616:OspC protein; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic; D005982:Glutathione Transferase