ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2016
Lyme disease and relapsing fever Borrelia elongate through zones of peptidoglycan synthesis that mark division sites of daughter cells.
Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 45 papers.
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Who cites it
45 citing papers in PubMed, 58 citations in OpenAlex.
- A cofactor-promiscuous HMGR from the Lyme disease pathogen illuminates diversity in bacterial isoprenoid biosynthesis.Protein science : a publication of the Protein Society · 2026Article
- Bactofilins are essential spatial organizers of peptidoglycan insertion in the Lyme disease spirocheteJournal of bacteriology · 2026Article
- A cofactor-promiscuous HMGR from the Lyme disease pathogen illuminates diversity in bacterial isoprenoid biosynthesis.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Peptidoglycan architecture dictates protein interactions, tissue tropism, and arthritis in the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi.PLoS pathogens · 2026Article
- Growth stage and interspecies interactions shape the cell biology and cell cycle characteristics of human gut bacteria Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron and Roseburia intestinalis.Communications biology · 2025Article
- Bacterial and host enzymes modulate the pro-inflammatory response elicited by the peptidoglycan of Lyme disease agent Borrelia burgdorferi.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
- The peptidoglycan ofScience translational medicine · 2025Article
- A high-resolution screen identifies a preexisting beta-lactam that specifically treats Lyme disease in mice.Science translational medicine · 2025Article
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- Broadly conserved FlgV controls flagellar assembly and Borrelia burgdorferi dissemination in mice.Nature communications · 2024Article
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- DnaA modulates the gene expression and morphology of the Lyme disease spirochete.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- Peptidoglycan in osteoarthritis synovial tissue is associated with joint inflammation.Arthritis research & therapy · 2024Article
- Broadly conserved FlgV controls flagellar assembly andbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- A chemosensory-like histidine kinase is dispensable for chemotaxis in vitro but regulates the virulence of Borrelia burgdorferi through modulating the stability of RpoS.PLoS pathogens · 2023Article
- A Borrelia burgdorferi LptD homolog is required for flipping of surface lipoproteins through the spirochetal outer membrane.Molecular microbiology · 2023Article
- A large screen identifies beta-lactam antibiotics which can be repurposed to target the syphilis agent.npj antimicrobials and resistance · 2023Article
- Polyploidy, regular patterning of genome copies, and unusual control of DNA partitioning in the Lyme disease spirochete.Nature communications · 2022Article
- Article
- Controlled Proteolysis of an Essential Virulence Determinant Dictates Infectivity of Lyme Disease Pathogens.Infection and immunity · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Agents that cause Lyme disease, relapsing fever, leptospirosis, and syphilis belong to the phylum Spirochaetae-a unique lineage of bacteria most known for their long, spiral morphology. Despite the relevance to human health, little is known about the most fundamental aspects of spirochete growth. Here, using quantitative microscopy to track peptidoglycan cell-wall synthesis, we found that the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi displays a complex pattern of growth. B. burgdorferi elongates from discrete zones that are both spatially and temporally regulated. In addition, some peptidoglycan incorporation occurs along the cell body, with the notable exception of a large region at the poles. Newborn cells inherit a highly active zone of peptidoglycan synthesis at midcell that contributes to elongation for most of the cell cycle. Concomitant with the initiation of nucleoid separation and cell constriction, second and third zones of elongation are established at the 1/4 and 3/4 cellular positions, marking future sites of division for the subsequent generation. Positioning of elongation zones along the cell is robust to cell length variations and is relatively precise over long distances (>30 µm), suggesting that cells ‟sense" relative, as opposed to absolute, cell length to establish zones of peptidoglycan synthesis. The transition from one to three zones of peptidoglycan growth during the cell cycle is also observed in relapsing fever Borrelia. However, this mode of growth does not extend to representative species from other spirochetal genera, suggesting that this distinctive growth mode represents an evolutionary divide in the spirochete phylum.
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