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Borrelia Burgdorferi

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Abstract: Ixodes scapularis and Ixodes pacificus are the two species of blacklegged ticks that act as vectors of transmission of the spirochete bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi to small mammals or human host, which cause Lyme disease in humans, also known as Lyme borreliosis (cdc.gov 2016; Qiu et al. 2002). After the pathogen’s initial entry through the skin, it proliferates in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid; Borrelia burgdorferi has also been seen in much smaller quantities in the following locations: ‘myocardium, retina, muscle, bone, spleen, liver, meninges, and brain’, which is the primary cause of more severe secondary symptoms of untreated infection (cdc.gov 2016; Steere 2004).
What are the requirements for survival and reproduction …show more content…

burgdorferi populations in the Mid-West and Northeast share a fairly recent common evolutionary ancestor despite geographic separation. The previous inference is supported by several contributing factors: both tick-borne populations of B. burgdorferi have very little genetic variation due to the minimal number of observed polymorphic sites present in each population, and both populations have similar linked allele combinations. More than likely, the above information suggests small population sizes and a recent common ancestor for both Northeast and Mid-Western populations of B. burgdorferi. However, Brisson et al. also noted that the independent populations have begun to minimally diverge from one another. The small evolutionary divergence between the two populations is not responsible for the higher rate of infection in the Northeast. Host populations in the Northeast encounter a different set of circumstances than hosts in the Mid-Western populations such as: host life-style and environmental factors, including closer proximity and different pathogen reservoirs, causing more frequent host-pathogen interactions, and thus a larger percentage of infected individuals in the Northeast than Mid-West

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