Complement Regulator-Acquiring Surface Protein: Difference between revisions

Lyme disease is caused by the spirochete ''Borrelia burgdorferi'', and is transferred into vertebrate hosts by zoonotic vectors such as ''Ixodes'' ticks (Bykowski et al. 2007). There are thousands of cases of Lyme disease reported each year, making it a prevalent disease in North America and Eurasia (Cordes et al. 2005). In order for ''B. burgdorferi'' to survive in its host, it evades its immune system through the use of surface proteins. One of the proteins responsible for a successful initial infection is ''Borrelia burgdorferi'' complement regulator-acquiring surface protein 1, or BbCRASP-1 (....). Because BbCRASP-1 binds host complement regulators to the spirochete's outer surface, it remains undetected within the host (Bykowski et al. 2007). BbCRASP-1 specifically binds to complement Factor H (FH) and Factor H-like proteins (FHL-1), which are responsible for the host's immune response and detection of pathogens (Kraiczy et al. 2004).