Analysis of Lipids and Lipid Rafts in Borrelia.

Lipid rafts are membrane microdomains that are involved in cellular processes such as protein trafficking and signaling processes, and which play a fundamental role in membrane fluidity and budding. The lipid composition of the membrane and the biochemical characteristics of the lipids found within rafts define the ability of cells to form microdomains and compartmentalize the membrane. In this chapter, we describe the biophysical, biochemical, and molecular approaches used to define and characterize lipid rafts in the Lyme disease agent, Borrelia burgdorferi.