< Back to Research Top Published Date 24/08/2017 Sleeper cells: the stringent response and persistence in the Borreliella (Borrelia) burgdorferi enzootic cycle Journal Environmental Microbiology Citation Environ Microbiol. 2017 Oct;19(10):3846-3862 DOI 10.1111/1462-2920.13897 Authors Cabello FC, Godfrey HP, Bugrysheva JV, Newman SA Abstract Infections with tick-transmitted Borreliella (Borrelia) burgdorferi, the cause of Lyme disease, represent an increasingly large public health problem in North America and Europe. The ability of these spirochetes to maintain themselves for extended periods of time in their tick vectors and vertebrate reservoirs is crucial for continuance of the enzootic cycle as well as for the increasing exposure of humans to them. The stringent response mediated by the alarmone (p)ppGpp has been determined to be a master regulator in B. burgdorferi. It modulates the expression of identified and unidentified open reading frames needed to deal with and overcome the many nutritional stresses and other challenges faced by the spirochete in ticks and animal reservoirs. The metabolic and morphologic changes resulting from activation of the stringent response in B. burgdorferi may also be involved in the recently described non-genetic phenotypic phenomenon of tolerance to otherwise lethal doses of antimicrobials and to other antimicrobial activities. It may thus constitute a linchpin in multiple aspects of infections with Lyme disease borrelia, providing a link between the micro-ecological challenges of its enzootic life-cycle and long-term residence in the tissues of its animal reservoirs, with the evolutionary side effect of potential persistence in incidental human hosts. URL Previous https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1462-2920.13897 No Review Needed? Next

< Back New CME on diagnosing neuro-Lyme patients, a symptom-tracker checklist LRC 18 Sept 2022 Previous Next

< Back to Research Top Published Date 14/06/2011 Healthcare access and burden of care for patients with Lyme disease: a large United States survey Journal Health Policy Citation Health Policy. 2011 Sep;102(1):64-71 DOI 10.1016/j.healthpol.2011.05.007 Authors Johnson L, Aylward A, Stricker RB Abstract OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the challenges faced by Lyme disease patients in obtaining adequate healthcare. METHODS: A web-based survey conducted over nine months was analyzed for the study. The survey focused on medical status, access to healthcare, and burden of illness. For inclusion in the study, survey respondents had to reside in the United States, be more than 10 years old, and have clinically diagnosed Lyme disease with chronic symptoms and positive laboratory testing. RESULTS: Responses from 2424 patients were included in the study. Half of the respondents reported seeing at least seven physicians before the diagnosis of Lyme disease was made. Nearly half had Lyme disease for more than 10 years and traveled over 50 miles to obtain treatment. Most respondents experienced symptoms lasting six months or more despite receiving at least 21 days of antibiotic treatment. A quarter of respondents had been on public support or received disability benefits due to Lyme disease symptoms, and over half had visited an emergency room at least once as a result of these symptoms. CONCLUSIONS:Lyme disease patients frequently endure extensive delays in obtaining an initial diagnosis, have poor access to healthcare and suffer a severe burden of illness. URL Previous https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21676482 No Review Needed? Next

< Back to Research Top Published Date 02/07/2012 The lymphocyte transformation test for borrelia detects active lyme borreliosis and verifies effective antibiotic treatment Journal The Open Neurology Journal Citation Open Neurol J. 2012;6:104-12 DOI 10.2174/1874205X01206010104 Authors von Baehr V, Doebis C, Volk HD, von Baehr R Abstract Borrelia-specific antibodies are not detectable until several weeks after infection and even if they are present, they are no proof of an active infection. Since the sensitivity of culture and PCR for the diagnosis or exclusion of borreliosis is too low, a method is required that detects an active Borrelia infection as early as possible. For this purpose, a lymphocyte transformation test (LTT) using lysate antigens of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, Borrelia afzelii and Borrelia garinii and recombinant OspC was developed and validated through investigations of seronegative and seropositive healthy individuals as well as of seropositive patients with clinically manifested borreliosis. The sensitivity of the LTT in clinical borreliosis before antibiotic treatment was determined as 89,4% while the specificity was 98,7%. In 1480 patients with clinically suspected borreliosis, results from serology and LTT were comparable in 79.8% of cases. 18% were serologically positive and LTT-negative. These were mainly patients with borreliosis after antibiotic therapy. 2.2% showed a negative serology and a positive LTT result. Half of them had an early erythema migrans. Following antibiotic treatment, the LTT became negative or borderline in patients with early manifestations of borreliosis, whereas in patients with late symptoms, it showed a regression while still remaining positive. Therefore, we propose the follow-up monitoring of dis-seminated Borrelia infections as the main indication for the Borrelia-LTT. URL Previous https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3474945 No Review Needed? Next

< Back to Research Top Published Date 09/03/2017 Serum biochemical profile and molecular detection of pathogens in semen of infertile male dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius) Journal American Reproduction Science Citation Animal Reproduction Science Volume 180, May 2017, Pages 58-65 DOI 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2017.03.003 Authors Al-Busadaha AK, El-Bahrb SM, Khalafallad AI Abstract Detection of pathogens in the semen of camels has not been completely elucidated. There-fore, the current study aimed to determine the association of some economically important pathogens with infertility in 94 male infertile camels through molecular detection and estimation of selected biochemical parameters in serum of these animals compared with a control non infected fertile animals (n = 40). PCR analysis of semen samples of infer-tile camels indicated that, four potential pathogens namely Mycoplasma spp., Leptospiraspp., Brucella melitensis, and Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) were detected in 50 semen samples of infertile camels whereas, 44 semen samples of infertile camels were free of pathogens and all tested semen samples were negative for bovine herpes virus 1, Salmonellaspp. and Trypanosoma evansi. Single and mixed infection was detected in 88% and 12% of the infected semen samples, respectively. Mycoplasma spp., Leptospira spp., Brucella andBovine viral diarrhea virus infection represented 66%, 27.2%, 4.5% and 2.3% of the single infected semen samples. Mycoplasma spp. + Leptospira spp. and Mycoplasma spp. + Brucellaspp. were detected in 83.3% and 16.7% of mixed infected semen samples, respectively.Testosterone concentration decreased significantly in infertile infected camels compare to both control and infertile non infected animals that remained comparable. The current findings reported the molecular detection of mixed infection in camel semen for the first time. Mycoplasma spp. is the most widely recognized microorganism in the present study and together with Leptospira spp., Brucella spp. and Bovine viral diarrhea virus, might be associated with infertility in dromedary camels. URL Previous https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S037843201630495X No Review Needed? Next

CRYPTO-INFECTIONS CONFERENCE 2023 LYME DISEASE & OTHER HIDDEN INFECTIONS: MICROBIAL PERSISTENCE (HYBRID ATTENDANCE IN PERSON OR ONLINE) About the event HYBRID ATTENDANCE IN PERSON OR ONLINE Join Zoom Meeting links will be provided before the event. To book, please see the details below. The Third international ‘CryptoConference’ will be held in Dublin Ireland June 17th to 18th 2023. ‘Crypto’ refers to occult infections which are hard to diagnose and hard to treat. The theme of the third conference is ‘microbial persistence’, which is the way that these occult infections evade the immune system and evade routine diagnostic techniques. We have invited a range of clinicians and basic scientists from the USA, Canada, and throughout the European Union, to spend two days in Dublin. The topics to be addressed include Borrelia, Bartonella, Babesia, and a range of other microbial pathogens. Lectures will be provided that will appeal to primary care doctors (general practitioners) on the subject of Lyme and Long COVID, as well as more basic science lectures that will appeal to bench researchers as well as clinicians. This event is recognised for CPD. For issues or queries about the conference, please contact the conference organiser Gordana Avramovic gavramovic@mater.ie Bookings Closed Meeting Agenda See More Speaker Biographies See More MEETING AGENDA SATURDAY 17th June 2023 CHAIRS: Prof John (Jack) Lambert & Christian Perronne Time Title Speaker 08:30 Introduction Prof John (Jack) Lambert 08:40 An Overview of Persistent Infections Prof Christian Perronne 09:30 A One Health approach to understanding and preventing Zoonotic infections Prof Gerald Barry 10:00 Lyme Persistence Dr Monica Embers 11:00 Coffee break 11:20 From bedside to bench- A clinicians journey in caring for patients with tickborne disease Dr Chris Green 12:00 Persistent Bartonella infection Dr B Robert Mozayeni 13:00 LUNCH & POSTER DISPLAY 14:00 Persistence of Lyme Disease Spirochetes- an Unsolved Problem Dr Natasha Rudenko 14:30 SIX ABSTRACTS- (10 minutes each- 10 minutes for questions) (See notes below) 15:40 Persistent Babesia Infection Dr Adam Birkenheuer 16:40 Why collaborate with patients? Christele Dumas Gonnet 17:10 Alzheimer Induced By Microbial Persistence Mikolaj Hurla 17:40 End of First day - Drinks & Reception SIX ABSTRACTS Prof Dominique SALMON, Maladies Infectieuses, Université de Paris Cite, France Dr Ritti Soncco, Social and Medical Anthropology, University of Edinburgh Mickaël GUERIN, Ph.D Student,CNRS Université de Technologie de Compiègne, Sorbonne Université Prof Vett Lloyd, Mt. Allison University , New Brunswick, Canada Dr Amir Khadir, Hôpital Le Gardeur, Terrebonne, Québec, Canada Abbie Thoma, Medical student, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland ABSTRACT QUESTIONS (10 minutes) MEETING AGENDA Sunday 18th June 2023 CHAIRS: Prof Christian Perronne, Prof Gerald Barry Time Title Speaker 09:00 Introduction 09:15 Long COVID Dr John (Jack) Lambert 10:15 Neuropsychiatric Manifestations of Tick-borne Infections Dr Bob Bransfield 11:15 Coffee break 11:45 The Importance Of Chronic Infections In Chronic Disease And The Potential Role Of Mitochondria Prof Karl Morten 12:15 TWO ABSTRACTS (10 minute presentations and 10 minutes for questions) (See notes below) 12:35 From Bench to the Sandbox: Sparking Curiosity to Ignite Scientific Discovery and Social Innovation Laura Lott, MBA 13:15 Round Table & Conclusions Prof Christian Perronne, Prof John Lambert & Dr Chris Green 13:45 End of conference TWO ABSTRACTS Elizabeth Lee-Lewandrowski, Ph.D. MP, Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston Massachusetts, USA Tanja Mijatovic, PhD, CSO & Lab Manager, R.E.D. Laboratories ABSTRACT QUESTIONS (10 minutes) ACCEPTED POSTERS Evaluation of the Rapid Quidel Sofia 2 Lyme immunoassay as a First-Tier Test in a Two-Tier Testing Algorithm for Lyme Disease. Comparison to the Zeus ELISA Borrelia VisE1/pepC10 IgG/IgM assay. Lewandrowski E.L.¹,², Lewandrowski K.¹,², Branda J.1,2, Turbett S.¹,² (1) Department of Pathology, Division of Clinical Laboratories and Molecular Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital (2) Harvard Medical School . Lyme Diagnosis: Contribution of Clinical Data Analysis by Machine Learning Shawky M. ¹, Guerin M.², Maffucci I.², Octave S², Avalie B.², Padiolleau-Lefevre S.² COSTECH laboratory, Universite de technologie de Compiegne, France. GEC laboratory. Polyclinique Saint-Come, Compiegne, France. Developing A Blood Cell-Based Diagnostic Test For Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Using Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells. Xu J¹, Lodge T², Kingdon C³, Strong J.W.L.², Maclennan J.⁴, Lacerda E.³, Kujawski S⁵, Zalewski P.⁵,⁶, Huang W.E¹, Morten K.J.² (1)Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford. (2) Nuffield Department of Women’s and Reproductive Health, University of Oxford. (3) Faculty of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. (4) Soft Cell Biological Research. (5) Department of Exercise Physiology and Functional Anatomy. Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun. (6) Department of Experimental and Clinical Physiology. Warsaw Medical University. * A Decrease In CD57+ NK Cells Is Demonstrated In Patients Positive For Tick-Borne Infections. Thoma A¹, Avramovic G², Rajput-Ray M³ Gilbert L⁴, Madigan A², Lambert J¹,² (1) University College Dublin, Ireland. (2) Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin Ireland. (3) Curaidh Clinic, Dundee, Scotland, UK. (4) Te?ted Oy, Jyväskylä, Finland A Greater Severity Of Fatigue Is Demonstrated In Weakly Antibody-Positive Patients In A Tick-Borne Infection (TBI) Cohort. Thoma A¹, Avramovic G², Rajput-Ray M³, Gilbert L⁴, Madigan A², Lambert J¹,² (1) University College Dublin, Ireland. (2) Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin Ireland. (3) Curaidh Clinic, Dundee, Scotland, UK. (4) Te?ted Oy, Jyväskylä, Finland SPEAKERS’ BIOGRAPHIES Prof Jack (John) Lambert Consultant Infectious Diseases, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital/ University College Dublin, Ireland Dr John lambert is is a consultant in Infectious diseases and genitourinary medicine, and has been practicing in Dublin Ireland as a consultant in the Mater and Rotunda Maternity hospitals, with teaching appointment at UCD School of Medicine and Medical Science. He is director of the National Isolation Unit for Highly Infectious Diseases at the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital and a member of the National Viral Hemorrhagic Fever Committee of the HSE. He has also been involved in the Sexual Health Strategy group in Ireland and teaching GP in Ireland on the subject of STDs. He has presented widely in the field of Lyme and co infections in the last 3 years through EU and USA conferences supported by the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS). Prof Christian Perronne Former Professor of Infectious and Tropical Diseases at the University of Versailles-St Quentin (UVSQ), France Christian Perronne, MD, PhD, qualified in Internal medicine, is Professor of Infectious and Tropical Diseases. He retired in March 2022 from the University of Versailles-Paris Saclay, France. From 1994 to 2020, he was chief of a Department of medicine at the Raymond Poincaré University Hospital in Garches, Greater Paris University Hospitals group. He had major responsibilities within several institutions: Pasteur institute in Paris (vice-director of the national tuberculosis reference center), French College of Professors of Infectious and Tropical Diseases (chairman), French National Technical Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (chairman), French Drug Agency (chairman of several working groups making evidence based recommendations), Superior Council for Public Hygiene of France (Chairman), French High Council for Public Health (Chairman of the Communicable diseases commission), INSERM, National Council of Universities (Chairman for infectious and tropical diseases), European Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation at the World Health Organization (vice-chairman). He was principal investigator of several major clinical trials. He is author or co-author of more than 300 scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals. Since 1994, Christian Perronne is involved in the management of chronic Lyme and associated diseases. He is author of a book “La vérité sur la maladie de Lyme” (in French) (“The truth about Lyme disease”), Odile Jacob publisher, Paris, which will be published in English in May 2020 (“Crypto-infection, the truth about Lyme disease and other hidden infections”), Hammersmith publisher, London, Dublin. Dr. Gerald Barry Assistant Professor of Virology in University College Dublin Gerald is chair of the Irish Division of the Microbiology Society, and a member of the Irish Government's Environmental Protection Agency GMO advisory committee. Dr Barry has worked on viruses that infect both animals and / or humans for over 15 years and his group's work mainly focuses on how viruses interact with their hosts and what, on a molecular level, determines a viruses ability to jump species and become zoonotic. Dr. Barry's group is also engaged in surveillance work, identifying viruses in animals and insects that have zoonotic potential. During the pandemic Dr. Barry engaged in research specific to COVID-19 and contributed to reports on aspects of SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics and prevention of infection in the workplace. Previously, Dr. Barry has worked with colleagues in the UK and Europe to understand ticks, how they carry and transmit infectious agents and specifically tick - borne infections such as Borrelia Burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme Disease. Dr. Monica Embers Associate Professor in the Division of Immunology and the Director of Vector-borne Disease Research at the Tulane National Primate Research Center, USA. Dr. Embers is currently an Associate Professor in the Division of Immunology and the Director of Vector-borne Disease Research at the Tulane National Primate Research Center. Her research program regarding Lyme disease and its infectious cause Borrelia burgdorferi specializes in animal models. The research is centered around three major efforts: (1) identifying treatments that can eradicate B. burgdorferi infection; (2) detection of persistent Lyme disease spirochetes in human (autopsy) tissues; and (3) immunodiagnosis for B. burgdorferi infection and cure. By transmitting Lyme disease to mice and nonhuman primates by tick, and studying the natural course of infection, her group aims to attain a better understanding of the clinical quandaries of human Lyme disease, including effective diagnosis and treatment. Due to the many similarities between Bartonellosis and Lyme disease, her team has begun to develop research models for Bartonella infection. The goals of Bartonella research involve developing improved treatment strategies, understanding the pathophysiology of co-infection, and interrogating tick vector transmission of these pathogens. Dr Christine Green, MD Board Certified Family Physician, San Francisco, USA Dr. Christine Green is a board certified family physician practicing in the San Francisco Bay area for over 35 years. Returning patients to excellent health often requires “medical sleuthing.” Understanding the physiology of the body and its interaction with infection (pathophysiology) led Dr. Green to her expertise in chronic vector-borne diseases, including persistent (chronic) tickborne diseases. The CDC notes that there are over 500,000 new cases of Lyme disease in Americans yearly. The vector-borne illnesses that Dr. Green recognizes, diagnoses and treats are relatively new and the scientific evidence is still emerging. She has devoted her time to understand how to best diagnose and treat sick patients and to share that understanding by developing evidence-based curriculum to provide other physicians continuing medical education. Over the past twenty-five years Dr. Green has treated thousands of patients with persistent tickborne disease. She serves on the boards of multiple Lyme organizations, speaks at conferences in the US and Europe, and is currently a director on the board and serves as Education Co-director of Invisible International,.https://invisible.international/ Dr. Green considers the whole patient, the scientific evidence, the clinical evidence and applies best practices on an individual basis. Dr B Robert Mozayeni, MD Expert in Translational Medicine, the science and art of advancing medical science safely and efficiently Dr. Mozayeni trained in Internal Medicine, Rheumatology and Molecular Biophysics in a physician-scientist research residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, where Lyme disease was discovered and treated by Rheumatologists in the Rheumatology section. He subsequently became a Senior Staff Fellow at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) where he completed a second fellowship in Rheumatology. Since 1994, while in private practice, has held clinical privileges at Suburban Hospital, a member of Johns Hopkins Medicine and an affiliate of the NIH Clinical Center. Recently, he became the President of ILADS. His main objective with ILADS is the same as with his professional career – to advance the science of translational medicine and learn from the issues presented by Lyme disease, how to more rapidly advance medical science. His career passion is to find the fastest path for advancing medical science in diverse areas of patient need and controversy to validate and continuously improve best clinical practices. He is the Chief Medical Officer of Galaxy Diagnostics, LLC. Recently, he founded ‘T Lab’ focusing on the use of high resolution microscopy to identify cryptic infections and demonstrate how they cause disease. He is a Fellow of the non-profit Think Lead Innovate Foundation and he is a founder of the non-profit Foundation for the Study of Inflammatory Diseases. His work on cerebrovascular diseases, as a Rheumatologist, he began to appreciate the importance of Bartonella cryptic infections. Over the past 12 years, he has been actively researching chronic rheumatic and cerebrovascular diseases and their relationship to persistent human Bartonella infection. Dr. Natasha Rudenko, PhD. Deputy Head of the laboratory of Molecular Ecology of Vectors and Pathogens at the Institute of Parasitology of Biology Centre Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic For the last two decades her research were focused on ecology, epidemiology, and distribution of arthropod-borne diseases and vector-host-pathogen interactions. The main interests are: ecology, epidemiology, genetic diversity of the causative agent of human Lyme disease, the spirochetes from Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato complex, in Europe and around the world and their impact in global public health, microbial infectivity, pathogenicity, survival behaviors, and response to antibiotic treatment or capability to transform into persisting forms that cause relapsing or chronic diseases. Dr. Adam Birkenheuer Andy Quattlebaum Distinguished Chair in Infectious Disease Research at the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine, USA. Dr Birkenheuer received his DVM from the University of Florida, and his PhD in Immunology from NC State University. He is the Quattlebaum Distinguished Chair in Infectious Disease Research at the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine, USA and has widely published on tick-borne diseases. ​ Christèle Dumas-Gonnet Patient-Expert Lyme disease and co-infections Christèle Dumas-Gonnet is 49 years old and she graduated a University Degree in Therapeutic Patient Education at Faculty of Medicine of the Sorbonne University – Paris in 2021. She’s the Co-founder of the PReFacE Collective (Patient REsource FACilitator Europe). She initially graduated from Sciences Politiques Lyon and has worked for almost 20 years in the field of health, medico-social and child protection. She is also a volunteer in end-of-life support for people with brain tumors in a neuro-oncology department. Mikolaj Hurla President of student research group of neurobiology, undergraduate researcher at Neurobiology Lab, Clinic of Neurology, Poznan University of Medical Sciences (PUMS) Mikołaj Hurła is a 6th year MD student and the president of the student research group of neurobiology. He has been awarded a Chancellor's Scholarship (2021-2023) for his scientific activity. He is a member of the Alzheimer’s Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer’s Research and Treatment and the Student Scientific Society. He is an active member of Prof Jolanta Dorszewska and Prof Wojciech Kozubski research team at Neurobiology Lab and Clinic of Neurology PUMS. His main interests are: neurodegenerative diseases, especially Alzheimer's Disease and its molecular basis. Recently his research concerns the involvement of infectious agents in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease. Robert C. Bransfield, MD, DLFAPA Board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in Psychiatry and a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. Dr. Bransfield’s primary activity is an office based private practice of psychiatry. In addition, Dr Bransfield is the Past President of ILADS, the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Educational Foundation and the New Jersey Psychiatric Association. He has held a number of administrative positions with organizations involved with health, mental health and community related activities. He is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Rutgers—Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine. Dr Bransfield has authored and co-authored a number of publications in peer-reviewed literature, other medical publications and books; has been active in political advocacy on an international, national and local level. Prof Karl Morten Principal Investigator and Director of Graduate Studies in the Nuffield Department of Women’s and Reproductive Health, Oxford University, UK. The Morten lab have a long-standing interest in understanding the role of mitochondria in health and disease and have built up over the last 15 years technologies allowing this to be studied in a high throughput format. Our research is multi-disciplinary working closely with clinicians, engineers and mathematicians. One of the leading groups in Oxford working on Mitochondria, the group collaborate widely in Oxford supporting groups to carry out experiments in this area leading to a number of publications. Recently we have been actively exploring the mechanisms behind Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and developing compounds designed to target cancer cell mitochondria. Our plan is expand our research into other chronic conditions including Chronic Lyme Disease (CLD) and Long Covid. A small pilot study support by the Lyme Treatment Foundation has just started and looks to find evidence of persistent pathogens in CLD. The interplay between mitochondria and intracellular pathogens is likely highly important and an area we are actively exploring. Laura Lott (MBA) Chief Executive Officer, Invisible International, USA. Laura Lott is the Chief Executive Officer of Invisible International, a non-profit organization committed to alleviating the suffering caused by invisible illnesses through education, research, and community empowerment. Previously, she was the Executive Director of MIT Hacking Medicine Institute, aimed at fostering collaboration between industry, government, and academic institutions to accelerate medical innovation, as well as the co-founder and co-director of the Dean Center for Tick Borne Illness at the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School.

< Back to Research Top Published Date 13/09/2016 Lyme disease: the promise of Big Data, companion diagnostics and precision medicine Journal Infection and Drug Resistance Citation Infect Drug Resist. 2016 Sep 13;9:215-9 DOI 10.2147/IDR.S114770 Authors Stricker RB, Johnson L Abstract Lyme disease caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi has become a major worldwide epidemic. Recent studies based on Big Data registries show that >300,000 people are diagnosed with Lyme disease each year in the USA, and up to two-thirds of individuals infected with B. burgdorferi will fail conventional 30-year-old antibiotic therapy for Lyme disease. In addition, animal and human evidence suggests that sexual transmission of the Lyme spirochete may occur. Improved companion diagnostic tests for Lyme disease need to be implemented, and novel treatment approaches are urgently needed to combat the epidemic. In particular, therapies based on the principles of precision medicine could be modelled on successful "designer drug" treatment for HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C virus infection featuring targeted protease inhibitors. The use of Big Data registries, companion diagnostics and precision medicine will revolutionize the diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease. URL Previous https://www.dovepress.com/lyme-disease-the-promise-of-big-data-companion-diagnostics-and-precisi-peer-reviewed-article-IDR No Review Needed? Next

< Back to Research Top Published Date 23/05/2016 A Drug Combination Screen Identifies Drugs Active against Amoxicillin-Induced Round Bodies of In Vitro Borrelia burgdorferi Persisters from an FDA Drug Library Journal Frontiers in Microbiology Citation Front Microbiol. 2016 May 23;7:743 DOI 10.3389/fmicb.2016.00743 Authors Feng J, Shi W, Zhang S, Sullivan D, Auwaerter PG, Zhang Y Abstract Although currently recommended antibiotics for Lyme disease such as doxycycline or amoxicillin cure the majority of the patients, about 10-20% of patients treated for Lyme disease may experience lingering symptoms including fatigue, pain, or joint and muscle aches. Under experimental stress conditions such as starvation or antibiotic exposure, Borrelia burgdorferi can develop round body forms, which are a type of persister bacteria that appear resistant in vitro to customary first-line antibiotics for Lyme disease. To identify more effective drugs with activity against the round body form of B. burgdorferi, we established a round body persister model induced by exposure to amoxicillin (50 μg/ml) and then screened the Food and Drug Administration drug library consisting of 1581 drug compounds and also 22 drug combinations using the SYBR Green I/propidium iodide viability assay. We identified 23 drug candidates that have higher activity against the round bodiesof B. burgdorferi than either amoxicillin or doxycycline. Eleven individual drugs scored better than metronidazole and tinidazole which have been previously described to be active against round bodies. In this amoxicillin-induced round body model, some drug candidates such as daptomycin and clofazimine also displayed enhanced activity which was similar to a previous screen against stationary phase B. burgdorferipersisters not exposure to amoxicillin. Additional candidate drugs active against round bodies identified include artemisinin, ciprofloxacin, nifuroxime, fosfomycin, chlortetracycline, sulfacetamide, sulfamethoxypyridazine and sulfathiozole. Two triple drug combinations had the highest activity against amoxicillin-induced round bodies and stationary phase B. burgdorferi persisters: artemisinin/cefoperazone/doxycycline and sulfachlorpyridazine/daptomycin/doxycycline. These findings confirm and extend previous findings that certain drug combinations have superior activity against B. burgdorferi persisters in vitro, even when pre-treated with amoxicillin. These findings may have implications for improved treatment of Lyme disease. URL Previous https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2016.00743/full No Review Needed? Next

< Back How education can bend the curve in the tick-borne disease epidemic LRC 15 May 2023 Previous Next

< Back to Research Top Published Date 16/04/2015 Historic evidence to support a causal relationship between spirochetal infections and Alzheimer's disease Journal Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience Citation Front Aging Neurosci. 2015 Apr 16;7:46 DOI 10.3389/fnagi.2015.00046 Authors Miklossy J Abstract Following previous observations a statistically significant association between various types of spirochetes and Alzheimer's disease (AD) fulfilled Hill's criteria in favor of a causal relationship. If spirochetal infections can indeed cause AD, the pathological and biological hallmarks of AD should also occur in syphilitic dementia. To answer this question, observations and illustrations on the detection of spirochetes in the atrophic form of general paresis, which is known to be associated with slowly progressive dementia, were reviewed and compared with the characteristic pathology of AD. Historic observations and illustrations published in the first half of the 20th Century indeed confirm that the pathological hallmarks, which define AD, are also present in syphilitic dementia. Cortical spirochetalcolonies are made up by innumerable tightly spiraled Treponema pallidum spirochetes, which are morphologically indistinguishable from senile plaques, using conventional light microscopy. Local brain amyloidosis also occurs in general paresis and, as in AD, corresponds to amyloid beta. These historic observations enable us to conclude that chronic spirochetal infections can cause dementia and reproduce the defining hallmarks of AD. They represent further evidence in support a causal relationship between various spirochetalinfections and AD. They also indicate that local invasion of the brain by these helically shaped bacteria reproduce the filamentous pathology characteristic of AD. Chronic infection by spirochetes, and co-infection with other bacteria and viruses should be included in our current view on the etiology of AD. Prompt action is needed as AD might be prevented. URL Previous https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2015.00046/full No Review Needed? Next

< Back to Research Top Published Date 01/03/2020 Splenic findings in patients with acute babesiosis Journal Abdominal Radiology NY Citation 45(3):710-715. DOI 10.1007/s00261-019-02362-z. Authors Mojtahed A, Bates DDB, Hahn PF Abstract Purpose: To identify the imaging manifestations of splenic involvement in babesiosis, a potentially fatal tick-borne zoonosis with multi-organ involvement. Methods: In our single center HIPAA compliant IRB-approved study, we performed a retrospective search of the electronic medical record at our institution to identify all patients with known or suspected acute babesiosis from 2000 to 2017. We then reviewed all abdominal imaging of patients with confirmed disease to identify incidence and characteristics of splenic involvement. Splenomegaly was determined using a height- and gender-adjusted reference. Results: After exclusions, 63 patients with a confirmed diagnosis of babesiosis and contemporaneous imaging of the spleen were included in the final cohort. Within this cohort, 56 (89%) had splenomegaly at a minimum and 13 had splenic infarcts. Splenic rupture was present in eight patients with three having a pseudoaneurysm. In 14 patients with follow-up imaging, the spleen subsequently diminished in size. One additional patient with ruptured spleen underwent emergency splenectomy prior to imaging. Conclusion: Although the literature suggests splenic involvement is a rare finding, acute parasitemia with babesiosis commonly affects the spleen. Recognition of this association can aid radiologists diagnosing splenic involvement in babesiosis and can lead to appropriate intervention in the minority with splenic hemorrhage. Keywords: Babesiosis; Infectious disease; Spleen; Splenic rupture. URL Previous https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31832741/ No Review Needed? Next

< Back to Research Top Published Date 04/08/2020 Complement evasion strategies of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato Journal FEBS Letters Citation 594(16):2645-2656 DOI 10.1002/1873-3468.13894 Authors Dulipati V, Meri S, Panelius J Abstract Borreliosis (Lyme disease) is a spirochetal disease caused by the species complex of Borrelia burgdorferi transmitted by Ixodes spp. ticks. Recorded to be the most common tick-borne disease in the world, the last two decades have seen an increase in disease incidence and distribution, exceeding 360 000 cases in Europe alone. If untreated, infection may cause skin symptoms, arthritis, and neurological or cardiac complications. Borrelia spirochetes have developed strategies to evade the mammalian host immune system. These include the complement system, which is an important first-line defense mechanism against invading microbes. To evade the complement, spirochetes bind soluble complement regulators factor H (FH), factor H-like protein, and C4bp to their outer surfaces. B. burgdorferi spirochetes can inhibit the classical pathway of complement by the outer surface protein (Osp) BBK32, which blocks the activation of the C1 complex, composed of C1q, C1r, and C1s. The FH-binding proteins of borreliae include Osps OspE, CspA, and CspZ. Following repeated infections, antibodies against these proteins develop and may provide functional immunity against borreliosis. This review discusses critical immune evasion strategies, focusing on complement evasion by borreliae. URL Previous https://febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/1873-3468.13894 No Review Needed? Next