AUTHOR=Caskey John R. , Hasenkampf Nicole R. , Martin Dale S. , Chouljenko Vladimir N. , Subramanian Ramesh , Cheslock Mercedes A. , Embers Monica E. 

TITLE=The Functional and Molecular Effects of Doxycycline Treatment on Borrelia burgdorferi Phenotype

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2019.00690

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2019.00690

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>Recent studies have shown that <italic>Borrelia burgdorferi</italic> can form antibiotic-tolerant persisters in the presence of microbiostatic drugs such as doxycycline. Precisely how this occurs is yet unknown. Our goal was to examine gene transcription by <italic>B. burgdorferi</italic> following doxycycline treatment in an effort to identify both persister-associated genes and possible targets for antimicrobial intervention. To do so, we performed next-generation RNA sequencing on doxycycline-treated spirochetes and treated spirochetes following regrowth, comparing them to untreated <italic>B. burgdorferi</italic>. A number of genes were perturbed and most of those which were statistically significant were down-regulated in the treated versus the untreated or treated/re-grown. Genes upregulated in the treated <italic>B. burgdorferi</italic> included a number of <italic>Erp</italic> genes and <italic>rplU</italic>, a 50S ribosomal protein. Among those genes associated with post-treatment regrowth were <italic>bba74</italic> (Oms28), <italic>bba03</italic>, several peptide ABC transporters, <italic>ospA, ospB</italic>, <italic>ospC</italic>, <italic>dbpA</italic> and <italic>bba62</italic>. Studies are underway to determine if these same genes are perturbed in <italic>B. burgdorferi</italic> treated with doxycycline in a host environment.</p>