Borrelia burgdorferi

My father was diagnosed with early stage Lyme disease this morning, so in honor of him I want to talk a little bit about Borelia burgdorferi.

Lyme disease was described a few decades before the cause was known. The present form became studied after outbreaks occured in the area around Lyme, Connecticut, giving the disease its popular name.

B. burgdorferi is a spirochete bacteria, meaning that it has a helical coiled shape. It was first identified by Jorge Benanch, of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, who developed the first critical ELISA antibody test that could test for the presence of the bacteria. Dr. Benanch just so happens to also be the boss of my department and his wife was one of my high school biology teachers (now there’s something wikipedia can’t tell you). Soon after it was isolated by Willy Burgdorferi, for whom the bug was named.

The life cycle of Borrelia is interesting because they require ticks for transmission and mammals to feed on. Tick larvae become infected with Borrelia during the larvae or nymph stage when they feed on white-footed mice. Borrelia remains in the tick as it advances in its life cycle to adult. The adult ticks then feed on small mammals or humans, transmitting the spirochete where (in humans and dogs) it can become pathogenic. However adult ticks preferentially feed on white-tailed deer (no immediate relation to white-footed mouse) and is the source of the name ‘deer tick.’ The adult tick has to feed on deer blood for at least three days in order to be able to reproduce. Borrelia is nonpathogenic to deer.

This is an interesting commensal/parasitic relationship between these three organisms. The ticks rely on deer and Borrelia relies on the ticks. They are barely aware of the others existence, yet they have evolved together in a unique sort of hierarchy.

Posted in evolution, microbiology | 2 Comments »

Talk like a Biologist Day!

Taking Swansont’s lead, I’m declaring an annual Talk Like a Biologist Day. As far as I know, there is no such day already, so I’m going to take the initiative in saying that there needs be one.  The date is as yet to be determined, but some possibilities are April 22nd (Earth Day) and July 18th (birthday of Robert Hooke, discoverer of the cell).  Leave a comment if you like one of these two dates, or you would like to propose a different one.  This is a collaborative work in progress, so don’t be shy.

So in order to talk like a biologist, you’ll need to become familiar with the jargon and how to use it in every day situations. Allow me to provide some examples and feel free to add your own.

Is something distracting you from getting your work done on time? Don’t worry, it’s not your fault, it’s just due to an “allosteric interaction.”

Any type of regular route is a “pathway.”

Don’t talk about how someone looks, but you should discuss their “phenotype.”

Tough day at the office? If you snap at your co-workers, blame it on negative “environmental stimuli”

If something is happening here, it’s “autonomic.” Far away is “somatic.”

Murdered your child in a fit of frustration? Don’t worry, just pass it off as “strategic infanticide.”

Don’t pick out your outfit this evening, “apply selection pressures” to your wardrobe.

You’re not over the hill, you’re just in the ’stationary phase’ of your growth.

Trying to leave work early? Tell your boss that due to the “high concentration” of employees, you’re “diffusing” out of the building and that attempting to stay would be “energetically unfavorable.”

Put “saccharides” in your coffee.

Try to “replicate your design information” with your significant other tonight.

While your at it, assure them that s/he has your “striated involuntary cardiac muscle tissue.’

Don’t touch anything today, but “probe” with your “receptors.”

Refer to household pets by using their binomial nomenclature, and don’t forget to refer to yourself as a “taxonomist.”

If you happen to be stacking objects today, make sure everyone knows that its a “nested hierarchy.”

Don’t forget to take it easy today. On Talk Like a Biologist Day, its important to “maintain homeostasis.”

Posted in evolution, humor, link out, microbiology | 4 Comments »