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Infection and Immunity, September 2000, p. 5190-5197, Vol. 68, No. 9
Center for Comparative Medicine, University
of California, Davis, California 95616
Received 3 December 1999/Returned for modification 10 February
2000/Accepted 9 June 2000
The humoral immune response to Borrelia burgdorferi
during persistent infection is critical to both protective and
disease-resolving immunity. This study examined the role of B cells in
the absence of T cells during these events, using mice with selected
immune dysfunctions. At 6 weeks postinfection, an interval at which
arthritis resolves in immunocompetent mice, arthritis severity was
equivalent among immunocompetent mice,
0019-9567/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
T-Cell-Independent Responses to Borrelia burgdorferi
Are Critical for Protective Immunity and Resolution of Lyme
Disease

+-T-cell-deficient mice, and mice lacking both

+ and 
+ T cells. Arthritis severity
was worse in SCID mice, which lack T and B lymphocytes. Carditis
regressed in immunocompetent mice and those lacking both

+ and 
+ T cells but remained active
in mice lacking only 
+ T cells and in SCID mice. Mice
lacking only 
+ T cells and those lacking both

+ and 
+ T cells generated
immunoglobulin M (IgM) and IgG3 B. burgdorferi-reactive antibodies. Sera from infected
immunocompetent mice, mice lacking only 
+ T cells,
and mice lacking both 
+ and 
+ T
cells passively protected naive mice against challenge inoculation with
B. burgdorferi. However, only sera from infected
immunocompetent mice, but not sera from infected T-cell-deficient mice,
were able to resolve arthritis when passively transferred to actively
infected SCID mice. These data demonstrate that B-cell activation
during a T-cell-independent response may be critical for resolution of arthritis and carditis and that protective antibodies are generated during this response.
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Center for
Comparative Medicine, University of California, One Shields Ave.,
Davis, CA 95616. Phone: (530) 754-5496. Fax: (530) 752-7914. E-mail: mdmckisic{at}ucdavis.edu.
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