Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria

This scanning electron micrograph depicts three Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, which had been derived from a pure culture. This pathogenic organism is responsible for causing the illness, Lyme disease, a zoonotic, vector-borne, ailment, transmitted to humans by way of a tick bite. B. burgdorferi belongs to a group of bacteria, called spirochetes, whose appearance resembles a coiled spring.