title: A Borrelia burgdorferi Surface-Exposed Transmembrane Protein Lacking Detectable Immune Responses Supports Pathogen Persistence and Constitutes a Vaccine Target.
abstract: Borrelia burgdorferi harbors a limited set of transmembrane surface proteins, most of which constitute key targets of humoral immune responses. Here we show that BB0405, a conserved membrane-spanning protein of unknown function, fails to evoke detectable antibody responses despite its extracellular exposure. bb0405 is a member of an operon and ubiquitously expressed throughout the rodent-tick infection cycle. The gene product serves an essential function in vivo, as bb0405-deletion mutants are unable to transmit from ticks and establish infection in mammalian hosts. Despite the lack of BB0405-specific immunoglobulin M or immunoglobulin G antibodies during natural infection, mice immunized with a recombinant version of the protein elicited high-titer and remarkably long-lasting antibody responses, conferring significant host protection against tick-borne infection. Taken together, these studies highlight the essential role of an apparently immune-invisible borrelial transmembrane protein in facilitating infection and its usefulness as a target of protective host immunity blocking the transmission of B. burgdorferi.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maryland-College Park and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, College Park.
authors.forename: Faith
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kung
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maryland-College Park and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, College Park.
authors.forename: Simarjot
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kaur
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maryland-College Park and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, College Park.
authors.forename: Alexis A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maryland-College Park and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, College Park.
authors.forename: Xiuli
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maryland-College Park and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, College Park.
authors.forename: Cara N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Wilder
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maryland-College Park and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, College Park.
authors.forename: Kavita
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ozlem
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Buyuktanir
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maryland-College Park and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, College Park.
authors.forename: Utpal
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Pal
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D025065:Borrelia burgdorferi / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D005260:Female; D056724:Immunity, Humoral; D000071497:Immunogenicity, Vaccine; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D022123:Lyme Disease Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D016296:Mutagenesis
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; C000619435:BB0405 protein, Borrelia burgdorferi; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D022123:Lyme Disease Vaccines
keywords: BB0405; Borrelia burgdorferi; pathogen persistence; transmission-blocking; vaccine