PLoS ONE

Lyme disease is a multisystemic disorder caused by B. burgdorferi sl. The molecular basis for specific organ involvement is poorly understood. The skin plays a central role in the development of Lyme disease as the entry site of B. burgdorferi in which specific clones are selected before dissemination. We compared the skin inflammatory response (antimicrobial peptides, cytokines and chemokines) elicited by spirochete populations recovered from patients presenting different clinical manifestations. Remarkably, these spirochete populations induced different inflammatory profiles in the skin of C3H/HeN mice. As spirochete population transmitted into the host skin is heterogeneous, we isolated one bacterial clone from a population recovered from a patient with neuroborreliosis and compared its virulence to the parental population. This clone elicited a strong cutaneous inflammatory response characterized by MCP-1, IL-6 and antimicrobial peptides induction. Mass spectrometry of this clone revealed 110 overexpressed proteins when compared with the parental population. We further focused on the expression of nine bacterial surface proteins. bb0347 coding for a protein that interacts with host fibronectin, allowing bacterial adhesion to vascular endothelium and extracellular matrix, was found to be induced in host skin with another gene bb0213 coding for a hypothetical protein. These findings demonstrate the heterogeneity of the B. burgdorferi ss population and the complexity of the interaction involved early in the skin

Microarray Analyses of Inflammation Response of Human Dermal Fibroblasts to Different Strains of Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Stricto

In Lyme borreliosis, the skin is the key site of bacterial inoculation by the infected tick, and of cutaneous manifestations, erythema migrans and acrodermatitis chronica atrophicans. We explored the role of fibroblasts, the resident cells of the dermis, in the development of the disease. Using microarray experiments, we compared the inflammation of fibroblasts induced by three strains of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto isolated from different environments and stages of Lyme disease: N40 (tick), Pbre (erythema migrans) and 1408 (acrodermatitis chronica atrophicans). The three strains exhibited a similar profile of inflammation with strong induction of chemokines (CXCL1 and IL-8) and IL-6 cytokine mainly involved in the chemoattraction of immune cells. Molecules such as TNF-alpha and NF-κB factors, metalloproteinases (MMP-1, -3 and -12) and superoxide dismutase (SOD2), also described in inflammatory and cellular events, were up-regulated. In addition, we showed that tick salivary gland extracts induce a cytotoxic effect on fibroblasts and that OspC, essential in the transmission of Borrelia to the vertebrate host, was not responsible for the secretion of inflammatory molecules by fibroblasts. Tick saliva components could facilitate the early transmission of the disease to the site of injury creating a feeding pit. Later in the development of the disease, Borrelia would intensively multiply in the skin and further disseminate to distant organs