Linear and Circular Plasmid Content in Borrelia burgdorferi Clinical Isolates

Abstract excerpt

The genome of Borrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease, is composed of a linear chromosome and more than 20 linear and circular plasmids. Typically, plasmid content analysis has been carried out by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and confirmed by Southern hybridization. However, multiple plasmids of virtually identical sizes (e.g., lp28 and cp32) complicate the interpretation of such data. The...