# Using Fluorescence Nanoscopy to Study RNA Localization in Borrelia burgdorferi, the Spirochete that Causes Lyme Disease

> **NIH NIH R21** · BATES COLLEGE · 2020 · $138,900

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
 Approximately 300,000 cases of Lyme disease are diagnosed each year in the United
States. Lyme is caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, a microorganism that cycles in
nature between ticks and vertebrate hosts. Patterns of gene expression change dramatically as
this bacteria navigates the different environments in its different hosts. Gene expression levels
may be determined by the spatial arrangement of RNA transcripts in the bacterial cells. We
propose to study this relationship in B. burgdorferi.
 B. burgdorferi cells are very long but incredibly narrow: less than ~200 nm in diameter. The
narrow width limits the application of conventional fluorescence microscopy to study subcellular
spatial arrangements of transcripts within these cells. The phenomenon of diffraction limits the
resolution of a conventional microscope to approximately half the wavelength of light used,
thereby obscuring biological structure and process occurring on length scales smaller than ~250
nm. Fortunately, the recent emergence of fluorescence nanoscopy techniques now provide near
molecular-level resolution and allows the study of biological systems at the nanoscale.
 The overall aim of our work is to determine the spatial arrangement of a diverse set of RNA
transcripts in B. burgdorferi cells. To test the hypothesize that RNA localization plays a role in
the expression and turnover of transcripts in B. burgdorferi, including those that are involved in
its virulence and pathogenicity, we propose to use fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and
STED nanoscopy to characterize the spatial arrangement of diverse transcripts encoding gene
products that localize in different parts of the cell, have different turnover rates, and have
diverse functions. Characterization of a set of diverse transcripts and advances to a custom built
nanoscope to increase three dimensional resolution and multicolor imaging are proposed. Our
elucidation of the localization patterns of these transcripts will increase the general
understanding of the roles of RNA localization in gene expression and RNA turnover in bacteria
and provide insight into the role RNA localization may play in the enzootic cycle of this
pathogen.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9930032
- **Project number:** 5R21AI141935-02
- **Recipient organization:** BATES COLLEGE
- **Principal Investigator:** TRAVIS John GOULD
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $138,900
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-05-15 → 2021-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9930032

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9930032, Using Fluorescence Nanoscopy to Study RNA Localization in Borrelia burgdorferi, the Spirochete that Causes Lyme Disease (5R21AI141935-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9930032. Licensed CC0.

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