Borrelia News and Research

RSS

Study assesses reasons for continued lack of success in prevention, control of Lyme disease

Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vector-borne disease in the United States, with the majority of cases occurring in the Northeast. It has been three decades since the agent of the disease, the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, and the ticks that vector it were identified. However, the number of Lyme disease cases have steadily increased.

5 Jan 2012

New gel could nip Lyme borreliosis infection in the bud

They come out in the spring, and each year they spread further - the ticks. Thirty percent of them transmit borrelia pathogens, the causative agent of Lyme borreliosis that can damage joints and organs.

19 Dec 2011

Azithromycin gel may treat borreliosis in humans

Blood-sucking ticks are not just a nuisance, they can also transmit dangerous diseases. One of them is Lyme disease, which is caused by bacteria of the genus Borrelia, and requires a course of treatment with antibiotics lasting several weeks. LMU researchers have come up with a quicker alternative.

16 Sep 2011

Migratory birds play a key role in global spreading of tick-borne disease

The most common tick-borne disease in humans is Lyme borreliosis. Extensive field and laboratory tests have revealed that the Borrelia bacterium is present in a larger proportion of ticks than has been shown by earlier studies.

24 Jun 2011

New study offers detailed look at the status of Lyme disease in Central Illinois

A new study offers a detailed look at the status of Lyme disease in Central Illinois and suggests that deer ticks and the Lyme disease bacteria they host are more adaptable to new habitats than previously appreciated.

22 Jun 2011

Study explains why some people experience repeated infections of Lyme disease

The bacteria that cause Lyme disease, one of the most important emerging diseases in the United States, appear to hide out in the lymph nodes, triggering a significant immune response, but one that is not strong enough to rout the infection, report researchers at the University of California, Davis.

17 Jun 2011

PCR testing for B. burgdorferi bacteria in joint fluid may confirm Lyme arthritis diagnosis

New research shows that polymerase chain reaction testing for Borrelia burgdorferi DNA—the spirochetal bacteria transmitted by deer ticks—in joint fluid may confirm the diagnosis of Lyme arthritis, but is not a reliable indicator for active joint infection in patients whose arthritis persists after antibiotic therapy. Findings of this study are published in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology.

13 May 2011

Viral Genetics' lead researcher, Advisor to receive Lauren F. Brooks Hope Award

Viral Genetics, Inc. announced today that lead researcher Dr. M. Karen Newell Rogers and Advisor Mr. Richard Gerstner will receive the Lauren F. Brooks Hope Award, presented by Time for Lyme, Inc.

16 Feb 2011

Researchers adapt gene chip microarray technology to study glycans

Sugar molecules coat every cell in our bodies and play critical roles in development and disease, yet the components of these "glycans" have been difficult for scientists to study, because of their complexity.

6 Dec 2010

Scientists complete genetic blueprints for 13 different strains of Lyme disease bacteria

Scientists supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have determined the complete genetic blueprints for 13 different strains of Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. The achievement should lead to a better understanding of how genetic variations among strains may result in different courses of illness in people with Lyme disease, the most common tickborne disease in North America. The wealth of new genetic data will also help scientists develop improved ways to diagnose, treat and prevent Lyme disease.

19 Oct 2010

Researchers determine genetic blueprint of 13 strains of Lyme disease causing bacteria

Benjamin Luft, M.D., Professor of Medicine, Stony Brook University Medical Center, and a team of medical researchers have determined the genetic blueprint of 13 strains of the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. The finding is crucial to advancing research on Lyme disease, the most frequent tick-borne infection in North America and Europe, and may lead to better diagnostics and a vaccine.

14 Oct 2010

Studies reveal impact and spread of CVBDs worldwide

Fascinating studies giving new insights into the spread of leishmaniosis in the UK and France, the appearance of new CVBDs in Germany, the state of heartworm infection in Korea and the neurological impact on humans of long-term bartonella infection from the USA are among the papers now available for download from http://www.cvbd.org, as the proceedings of the 5th Annual Canine Vector Borne Disease (CVBD) World Forum are made available online today.

28 Jul 2010

Preventative measures to avoid Lyme disease

Research on the population of black-legged ticks, which can transmit Lyme disease from host animals to humans, reinforces that it is important to take preventative measures when spending time outdoors.

21 Jul 2010

New DNA test to detect Lyme disease spirochete infection

Many of the more than 30,000 people a year in the United States with suspected cases of Lyme disease spirochete (bacterial) infection can now take a DNA test developed by a Connecticut scientist/physician and his team that can quickly determine if they test positive for Lyme spirochetes in their blood.

30 Mar 2010

Body lice and head lice have same origin

Body lice, which cause highly lethal epidemics (trench fever, typhus and relapsing fever Borrelia), originate from head lice. This has recently been shown by a team from the Emerging Infectious and Tropical Diseases Research Unit (CNRS/IRD/Université de la Méditerranée), in collaboration with researchers from the Universities of Florida and Illinois (US).

26 Mar 2010

Researchers keep wary eye on emerging tick-borne diseases in Missouri

Stories of environmental damage and their consequences always seem to take place far away and in another country, usually a tropical one with lush rainforests and poison dart frogs.

26 Feb 2010

Habitat destruction and biodiversity loss can increase the incidence of infectious diseases

The extinction of plant and animal species can be likened to emptying a museum of its collection, or dumping a cabinet full of potential medicines into the trash, or replacing every local cuisine with McDonald's burgers.

4 Dec 2009

Researchers to discover new vaccine against infection from Lyme disease

A protein found in the saliva of ticks helps protect mice from developing Lyme disease, Yale researchers have discovered. The findings, published in the November 19 issue of Cell Host & Microbe, may spur development of a new vaccine against infection from Lyme disease, which is spread through tick bites.

20 Nov 2009

Researchers analyze the role of bioactive lipids in inflammatory diseases

According to the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 46 million Americans have arthritis. Many of these people take over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications that block production of certain molecules, known as bioactive lipids, to reduce pain and swelling. Yet, the role of these lipids is not yet understood completely, and medications may have adverse side effects.

2 Sep 2009

Lyme disease emerging in Canada

Lyme disease is emerging in Canada, and is expected to increase with climate change, but effective, enhanced surveillance and clinician awareness will be key to minimizing the impact of the disease, write researchers in a review in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).

9 Jun 2009