The Twists and Turns of Pathogenic Spirochetes: Novel Insights for Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment 2.0

Dear Colleagues,

I invite colleagues investigating any of the pathogenic spirochetes within the areas of their ecology, genetics, genomics, immunology, detection, public health, and vaccine development to submit their manuscripts to this Special Issue in the form of original research and review articles.

Spirochetes are an intriguing group of bacteria. They are very diverse in terms of their habitat, ecology, and in many instances their infectivity of vertebrate and non-vertebrate hosts. Many members of this group are known to be pathogens causing diseases worldwide such as Lyme disease, relapsing fever, syphilis, brachyspiral dysentery, periodontal diseases and leptospirosis. Besides being unique among bacteria in their motility, which enables them to move within the tissues of their hosts, they also depend on a host of outer surface proteins for the evasion of the innate and adaptive immune response within the host. Finally, most of them also depend on their hosts and/or vectors to perpetuate themselves in Nature.

The subject of the identification and description of the adaptations required for pathogenic spirochetes to be able to enter, disseminate, persist, and infect is still very new, interesting, and challenging. An increased understanding in this field is fundamental to the discovery and implementation of strategies for better diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.

Dr. Ryan O. M. Rego
Guest Editor

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