New immunologically active fractions of Borellia burgdorferi - and derived antibodies and DNA coding sequences for active and passive immunisation against and diagnosis of Lyme disease

摘要

New immunologically active fractions B, C and E of Borellia burgdorferi (B.b) are prepd. by first lysing B.b. spirochaete cells with a mild, non-denaturing detergent (I) to release outer membrane components (OMC), then cetrifuging the lysate to recover a pellet (P1) contg. cell wall and fleagellar components and supernatant (S1) contg. OMC. (S1) is uncubated to ppte. at least sone of the proteins contained in it, then centrifuged to recover a pellet (P2), which is fraction E, and supernatant (S2). (S2) is filtered, then dialysed against low ionic strength aq. medium or ultrafiltered to remove (I) and complex B.b-derived cell components. The contents of the dialysis bag are centrifuged to give a pellet, which is fraction, B and a supernatant which is fraction C. Also new are (1) a DNA fragment (II) encoding the 31 kD OspA protein of B.b New York Strain B31 (ATCC 35210), or its functional equivalents, and including the 5'-end of the ospA gene, and (2) antibodies (Ab) directed against fractions B, C or E or against the polypeptides encoded by (II).