G15SecL05Tpc3

Osp-B Introduction

Osp-B is an outer-surface protein molecule found in the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, a molecule essential for the survival of the bacterium. Since its primary function is to serve both as a site of antibody recognition and as the microvillar attachment to the Ixodes scapularis midgut, it is constitutively expressed.

Significance in Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is a disease of the skin, joints, nervous system and heart caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, the signature causative agent of the relapsing fever often transmitted to humans via the bite of the deer tick Ixodes scapularis (Becker, 2005). Of particular interest is the Fab fragment of the monoclonal antibody H6831; when directed against the C-terminus of the outer-surface protein Osp-B, a primary lipoprotein of the burgdorferi spirochete, these fragments are bactericidal even in the absence of complements or phagocytes (Sadziene, 1994).

FAB Antibody Binding Process

Literary References