An evaluation and the quantification of the antimicrobial effects of macrolide, antimalarial drugs, tetracycline and anti parasitic drugs on various morphological forms of Borrelia Burgdorferi bacteria
Lyme disease is a bacterial disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi bacterium. The disease is spread through bites from ticks. Lyme disease affects the skin, the nervous system, the heart and the joints. The disease develops in phases. The first phase begins with development of a Round red rash at the site of tick bite. The second phase is characterized by an expansion of the round red ring to other parts of the body. Some of the symptoms of this disease are erythema migrans, (circular or oval shaped rashes on the body), neurological disorders like bells palsy and serious headache, arthritis and heart problems (MFMER, 2013).
Lyme disease is treated with tetracycline like doxycline. Early treatment of the disease with antibiotics usually results in complete recovery. The late phases of the disease may take a longer time before full recovery can be achieved (MFMER, 2013). Chronic forms of Lyme disease that are resistant to antibiotics are associated with the formation of biofilms and cysts by the Borrelia burgdorferi bacterium (Mathews, 2013).
The development of biofilms in Borrelia Burgdorferi bacterium leads to persistence of symptoms of the disease. Biofilms which adherent polysaccharide matrices) allow the bacteria to survive hostile environments and antibiotics. Borrelia burgdorferi bacterium also expresses cyclic Di GMP, the regulatory molecule involved in regulation of biofilm formation (Mathews, 2013).
Currently, few effective treatments of eradicating the biofilms formed in bacteria that are responsible for the development of chronic infections in Lyme disease and other chronic infections like periodontitis and gastrointestinal infections (Mathews, 2013). A systematic comprehension of the effectiveness of various antimicrobial agents in the control of biofilm development in bacteria is therefore needed as a step towards developing an affective strategy for controlling biofilm development in bacteria. Different antibacterial agents display varying levels of effectiveness in regulating the development of biofilms and cysts in bacteria (Kim et al, 2008).
This study will examine the susceptibility of all the morphological forms of the Borrelia Burgdorferi bacteria to various antimicrobial agents like macrolide, anti-malarial drugs, and tetracycline ands anti-parasitic drugs. The morphological forms of Borrelia burgdorferi will be monitored using Dark Field Microscopy, Differential Interference Microscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy and Fluorescent Microscopy.
After treatment of the various morphological forms of Borrelia burgdorferi with the antimicrobials, this study will also seek to quantify the susceptibility levels of various forms of Borrelia Burgdorferi to each antimicrobial agent; macrolide, anti-malarial drugs, tetracycline ands anti-parasitic drugs respectively. Cell viability Assays will be carried out before and after the treatment of Borrelia Burdorferi with the antimicrobial drugs to determine the number of cells that survive after treatment. Other methods that will be used in the quantification of the effect and susceptibility of Borrelia Burgdorfeli to antimicrobials are Minimal Lethal Concentration (MLC) and Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC).
Real time Polymerase chain reaction will also be used to establish the genetic markers of Borrelia Burgdorferi for enhancing the accuracy of all the quantification data generated in the experiment. The insights that will be made in this study can help in establishing the antibacterial agents that have the greatest fatal effects on all morphological forms of Borrelia Burdorferi, which can be used in the development of novel therapeutic agents to counter chronic Lyme disease.
References
Kim, J., Pitts, B., Stewart, P., Camper, A., & Yoon, J. (2008). “Comparison of the antimicrobial effects of chlorine, silver in and tobramycin on biofilm”. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, 52(4), 1446-1453.
Mathew’s, L., (2013). Lyme disease bacterial biofilms responsible for chronic Lyme? Retrieved from http://lymediseaseguide.org/lyme-disease-bacterial-biofilms-responsible-for-chronic-lyme?
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (2013). Lyme disease. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/lyme-disease/DS00116
