Lyme Disease: Immune System Invasion and Evasion

The bacteria that causes Lyme Disease has some very interesting ways of invading and evading the human immune system. Here are some summarized facts, although the summary was done by an AI, so you can’t necessarily trust it. We think it’s probably correct.

1. Lyme disease can impair the immune system, making individuals more susceptible to other infections.
2. The bacteria can manipulate the immune system, leading to chronic inflammation and immune suppression.
3. The bacteria that causes Lyme disease can evade detection by the immune system in a number of ways, contributing to chronic infection and persistent symptoms.
4. VlsE (Variable Major Protein-like Sequence Expressed) is a highly variable lipoprotein that helps Borrelia evade the immune system by undergoing antigenic variation. This means that the bacterium continually changes the surface proteins, making it challenging for the immune system to recognize and target it effectively.
5. Borrelia bacteria also binds proteins of the immune system complement to itself, thus hiding from the immune system and avoiding being attacked.
6. Borrelia, the bacteria responsible for causing Lyme disease, has developed several mechanisms to bind complement proteins, such as C4b-binding protein (C4bp), to evade immune detection.
7. One mechanism employed by Borrelia involves expressing a surface protein called CRASP-1 which can directly bind to C4bp, forming a complex that inhibits the activation of the alternative pathway of the complement system.
8. Borrelia CRASP-1 (Complement Regulator-Acquiring Surface Protein 1) has been shown to directly bind to C4bp (Complement 4-binding protein) as a mechanism of immune system evasion.
9. By binding C4bp, Borrelia prevents the deposition of complement components and avoids opsonization, phagocytosis, and lysis by the complement system.
10. By acquiring the human complement regulator factor H, with CRASP-1 binding, Borrelia bacteria can effectively mask themselves from host detection and destruction.
11. Lyme disease bacteria can target immune cells in lymph nodes that produce antibodies against the bacterium, resulting in false negative antibody tests.
12. The bacteria that causes Lyme disease can evade the immune system by hiding inside cells or forming biofilms, making it difficult to eradicate with antibiotics.
13. Borrelia bacteria can infect and reside within B-lymphocytes, a type of immune cell that produce antibodies and, thus, Borrelia can escape immune surveillance and survive within the host.
14. The bacteria that causes Lyme disease can undergo antigenic variation, making it difficult for the immune system to mount an effective response against the infection.
15. Intracellular survival of Borrelia burgdorferi allows it to evade the immune system and contribute to persistent infections
16. Individuals with a weakened immune system, such as those with HIV/AIDS, may be at a higher risk of developing severe manifestations of Lyme disease.