Infection and inflammation in skeletal muscle from nonhuman primates infected with different genospecies of the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi.

From: JWissmille (jwissmille_at_aol.com)
Date: 09/25/04 

Date: 25 Sep 2004 00:42:19 GMT

Infect Immun. 2003 Dec;71(12):7087-98. Related Articles, Links

  
Infection and inflammation in skeletal muscle from nonhuman primates infected
with different genospecies of the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi.

Cadavid D, Bai Y, Dail D, Hurd M, Narayan K, Hodzic E, Barthold SW, Pachner AR.

Department of Neuroscience, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey,
New Jersey Medical School, Newark, New Jersey 07103, USA. Cadavidi@umdnj.edu

Lyme borreliosis is a multisystemic disease caused by various genospecies of
the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. To investigate muscle involvement in the
nonhuman primate (NHP) model of Lyme disease, 16 adult Macaca mulatta animals
inoculated with strain N40 of B. burgdorferi sensu strictu by syringe or by
tick bite or with strain Pbi of B. burgdorferi genospecies garinii by syringe
were studied. Animals were necropsied while immunosuppressed on day 50 (two
animals each inoculated with B. burgdorferi N40 by syringe and with B. garinii
Pbi by syringe) or on day 90, 40 days after immunosuppression had been
discontinued (four animals each inoculated with strain N40 by syringe, with
strain N40 by tick bite, and with strain Pbi by syringe). Skeletal muscles
removed at necropsy were studied by (i) microscopic examination of
hematoxylin-eosin-stained sections for inflammation and tissue injury; (ii)
immunohistochemical and digital image analyses for antibody and complement
deposition and cellular inflammation; (iii) Western blot densitometry for the
presence of antibodies; and (iv) reverse transcription-PCR for measurement of
the spirochetal load or C1q (the first component of the complement cascade)
synthesis. The results showed that N40 was more infectious for NHPs than Pbi.
NHPs inoculated with N40 but not with Pbi developed myositis. The inflammation
in skeletal muscle was more severe in NHPs inoculated with N40 by syringe than
in those inoculated by tick bite. The predominant cells in the inflammatory
infiltrate were T cells and plasma cells. The deposition of antibody and
complement in inflamed muscles from N40-inoculated NHPs was significantly
higher than that in Pbi-inoculated NHPs. The spirochetal load was very high in
the two N40-inoculated NHPs examined while they were immunosuppressed but
decreased to minimal levels in the NHPs when immunocompetence was restored. We
conclude that myositis can be a prominent feature of Lyme borreliosis depending
on the infecting organism and host immune status.

Substances:
Anti-Inflammatory Agents
Antibodies, Bacterial
Dexamethasone

Grant Support:
DMID-99-03/PHS

PMID: 14638799 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]