BBC article on Lyme Disease research -
This article is interesting. It’s the first time I’ve seen this mentioned:
That’s why a team of researchers at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is testing a new approach.
They’re in the middle of a clinical trial that allows uninfected ticks to feed on humans who have been treated for Lyme disease. Researchers will then test the ticks for the bacteria that causes the disease.
The process is called xenodiagnosis.
Acorns And Mice Driving Unusual Lyme Disease Risks -
[…] a heavy crop of acorns in 2010 […] fueled a 2011 population bloom in white-footed mice […] That surge intersected with the two-year lifecycle of the ticks that transmit Lyme disease, for which mice are the key host, and this summer could produce a bumper crop of infected tick nymphs
Fungus kills Lyme disease-carrying ticks -
The station tested it on residential properties in northwestern Connecticut and found up to 74 percent fewer ticks after treatment
…
It will be commercially available in 2014, said Kirby Stafford, the station’s vice director and chief entomologist.
Viral Genetics Submits Pre-IND Document for Lyme Disease Drug Candidate to FDA -
From the press release:
“To our knowledge, this is the first novel drug candidate that has been proposed for study in the treatment of chronic Lyme Disease post-infection in quite some time.”
“The way in which a society deals with marginalized populations is the signature and indelible stamp of that society’s character. And the the US healthcare system gets an F in this work here. Victims of Lyme disease are victimized twice by this illness. First by the unending suffering attached to the illness and second by a healthcare system that ignores them, and sometimes doesn’t just ignore them. It mocks them and ridicules them.” — Dr. Joseph Jemsek, Infectious Disease Specialist, HIV/AIDS and Lyme disease doctor (via sistersofmercy)
(Source: youtube.com, via sistersofmercy)
Lyme bacteria found in 5300 year old mummy
£2.5m Aid Granted to Study the Lyme Disease
Lignin-encapsulated (LE) nootkatone, a component of essential oil in grapefruit peels and other sources, has been found to be a good repellent against ticks that transmit Lyme disease.
A Step Closer to Tests for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Lyme Disease -
The researchers identified 738 proteins found in the CFS patients, but not healthy people or the treated Lyme patients. And they identified 692 proteins in the treated Lyme patients that weren’t in either CFS patients or healthy controls.
Viral Genetics Inc. Issues 2011 Year in Review and 2012 Outlook - MarketWatch -
Update on the Viral Genetics, Inc. (VRAL) Lyme drug program linked to previously. Reminder: IND means “Investigational new drug”, so Pre-IND is even earlier in the process.
We have recently entered into an agreement with a physician associated with one of the leading medical centers in the country to act as the “clinical lead” for this drug program. This doctor will complete the clinical portions of the pre-IND including an outline of the clinical trial protocol, as well as possibly serve as primary investigator for the planned clinical trial of our Lyme disease compound.