title: Hidden in plain sight: Borrelia burgdorferi and the extracellular matrix.
abstract: Borrelia burgdorferi, the tick-transmitted etiologic agent of Lyme borreliosis, can colonize and persist in multiple tissue sites despite vigorous host immune responses. The extracellular matrix appears to provide a protective niche for the spirochete. Recent studies in mice suggest that B. burgdorferi interacts in various ways with collagen and its associated molecules, exploiting molecular and structural features to establish microcolonial refugia. Better knowledge of the genetic and structural bases for these interactions of B. burgdorferi with the extracellular matrix will be required before an understanding of the persistence of B. burgdorferi in the tissues and development of chronic infections can be achieved.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY 10595, USA. cabello@nymc.edu
authors.forename: Felipe C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Cabello
authors.forename: Henry P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Godfrey
authors.forename: Stuart A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Newman
mesh_terms: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D025065:Borrelia burgdorferi / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003094:Collagen; D058575:Decorin; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology*; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D051379:Mice; D011509:Proteoglycans / Q000378:metabolism; D014774:Virulence
chemical_list: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C546878:DCN protein, human; C546879:Dcn protein, mouse; C112563:DdpA protein, Borrelia burgdorferi; C112557:DdpB protein, Borrelia burgdorferi; D058575:Decorin; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins; D011509:Proteoglycans; D003094:Collagen