Perinatal transmission of Borrelia burgdorferi: advancing scientific and clinical understanding of Lyme disease in pregnancy

Authors

• Sue Faber, LymeHope, Burlington, ON, Canada.
• Charlotte Mao, Bay Area Lyme Foundation, Portola Valley, CA, United States.
• Elizabeth Darling, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
• Holly Ahern, Science Division, State University of New York Adirondack, Queensbury, NY, United States.
• Catherine Brissette, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, United States.
• Tessa D. Gardner, Mercy Hospital, Saint Louis, MO, United States.
• Janis J. Weis, Department of Pathology, Division of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States.
• Sven Bergström, Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
• Edward B. Breitschwerdt, Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States.
• Carolyn B. Coyne, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States.
• Brian A. Fallon, Department of Psychiatry, Lyme and Tick-borne Diseases Research Center, Columbia University,New York, NY, United States.
• Holiday Goodreau, LivLyme Foundation, Denver, CO, United States.
• John S. Lambert, Rotunda Hospital, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
• Vett Lloyd, Department of Biology, Mount Allison University, Sackville, NB, Canada.
• Alessandra Luchini, School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Manassas, VA, United States.
• Sarah B. Mulkey, Children's National Hospital, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC, United States.
• Kate Nagel, LymeLight Foundation, Burlingame, CA, United States.
• Bennett Nemser, Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation, Stamford, CT, United States.
• Natalie Rudenko, Institute of Parasitology, Biology Center, Czech Academy of Sciences, České Budějovice, Czechia.
• Jinyu Shan, Phelix Research and Development, London, United Kingdom.
• Michal Caspi Tal, Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States.
• Monica E. Embers, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Tulane University Health Sciences, New Orleans, LA, United States.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

1-1-2026

Journal

Frontiers in medicine

Volume

13

DOI

10.3389/fmed.2026.1794120

Keywords

Borrelia (Borreliella) burgdorferi; Lyme disease; congenital; perinatal transmission; pregnancy

Abstract

Perinatal transmission of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (Bb), the spirochetal agent of Lyme disease, is an issue of public health importance and research significance. This alternate mode of transmission and the potential risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes were communicated within public health spheres following the first suspected case in 1985. Subsequent studies in reservoir and non-reservoir animal hosts, in addition to case reports of perinatal morbidity and mortality in humans brought further attention to the field. Decades later, however, the incidence and epidemiologic impact of perinatal transmission of Bb, as well as the clinical spectrum and potential long-term health sequelae of gestationally exposed children, remain understudied and poorly defined. In June 2022, a Banbury Conference on Perinatal Transmission of Lyme disease was convened at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York. This manuscript conveys conference findings and research recommendations to advance scientific and clinical understanding of this important issue.

APA Citation

Faber, Sue; Mao, Charlotte; Darling, Elizabeth; Ahern, Holly; Brissette, Catherine; Gardner, Tessa D.; Weis, Janis J.; Bergström, Sven; Breitschwerdt, Edward B.; Coyne, Carolyn B.; Fallon, Brian A.; Goodreau, Holiday; Lambert, John S.; Lloyd, Vett; Luchini, Alessandra; Mulkey, Sarah B.; Nagel, Kate; Nemser, Bennett; Rudenko, Natalie; Shan, Jinyu; Tal, Michal Caspi; and Embers, Monica E., "Perinatal transmission of Borrelia burgdorferi: advancing scientific and clinical understanding of Lyme disease in pregnancy" (2026). GW Authored Works. Paper 9083.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/9083

Department

Neurology