Immunochemical characterization of and isolation of the gene for a Borrelia burgdorferi immunodominant 60-kilodalton antigen common to a wide range of bacteria

TY - JOUR

T1 - Immunochemical characterization of and isolation of the gene for a Borrelia burgdorferi immunodominant 60-kilodalton antigen common to a wide range of bacteria

AU - Hansen, K

AU - Bangsborg, Jette Marie

AU - Fjordvang, H

AU - Pedersen, N S

AU - Hindersson, P

PY - 1988

Y1 - 1988

N2 - By crossed immunoelectrophoresis and Western blotting (immunoblotting), it was shown that Borrelia burgdorferi expresses the 60-kilodalton Common Antigen (CA) that is cross-reactive with an equivalent antigen in a wide range of remotely related bacteria. B. burgdorferi CA is strongly immunogenic. A B. burgdorferi genomic library was constructed by using a plasmid cloning system. Escherichia coli recombinants were screened for expression of immunodominant B. burgdorferi antigens. One of the recombinant clones expressed the 60-kilodalton CA of B. burgdorferi. The DNA region encoding B. burgdorferi CA was localized on a 2.3-kilobase fragment of the plasmid pKH1. CA may have pathogenetic implications in Lyme borreliosis, since the CA of mycobacteria recently has been shown to play a role in the etiology of experimental autoimmune arthritis. The extensive cross-reactivity of this antigen may account for the low diagnostic specificity of the currently used serological tests in Lyme borreliosis.

AB - By crossed immunoelectrophoresis and Western blotting (immunoblotting), it was shown that Borrelia burgdorferi expresses the 60-kilodalton Common Antigen (CA) that is cross-reactive with an equivalent antigen in a wide range of remotely related bacteria. B. burgdorferi CA is strongly immunogenic. A B. burgdorferi genomic library was constructed by using a plasmid cloning system. Escherichia coli recombinants were screened for expression of immunodominant B. burgdorferi antigens. One of the recombinant clones expressed the 60-kilodalton CA of B. burgdorferi. The DNA region encoding B. burgdorferi CA was localized on a 2.3-kilobase fragment of the plasmid pKH1. CA may have pathogenetic implications in Lyme borreliosis, since the CA of mycobacteria recently has been shown to play a role in the etiology of experimental autoimmune arthritis. The extensive cross-reactivity of this antigen may account for the low diagnostic specificity of the currently used serological tests in Lyme borreliosis.

KW - Antigens, Bacterial

KW - Borrelia

KW - Cloning, Molecular

KW - Cross Reactions

KW - DNA Restriction Enzymes

KW - Genes, Bacterial

KW - Immunoelectrophoresis, Two-Dimensional

KW - Lyme Disease

KW - Molecular Weight

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 2840400

SN - 0019-9567

VL - 56

SP - 2047

EP - 2053

JO - Infection and Immunity

JF - Infection and Immunity

IS - 8

ER -