https://www.ncipmc.org/projects/pest-alerts1/
https://www.ncipmc.org/projects/pest-alerts1/brown-dog-tick-vector-for-rocky-mountain-spotted-fever/
https://www.ncipmc.org/projects/pest-alerts1/rocky-mountain-spotted-fever-rickettsia-rickettsii/
https://www.ncipmc.org/projects/pest-alerts1/ticks-and-tick-borne-diseases/
https://www.localsyr.com/news/local-news/researchers-at-upstate-medical-university-collect-cny-ticks-for-testing-in-a-pilot-study/ News Video Here
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — A team of researchers with Thangamani Lab at Upstate Medical University have begun a multi-year pilot project studying the ticks in the Central New York region.
They’re trying to figure out which species of ticks are in the area, what they’re carrying, and how those infections impact a person’s health and their treatment.
“The deer ticks, they transmit 7 different pathogens,” said lead researcher, Saravanan Thangamani. “Almost 60% of ticks collected in Onondaga County are positive for Borrelia burgdorferi. That is the agent for Lyme disease.”
Some of the ticks also carry infections like Powassan virus, Ehrlichia, and Bartonella.
One of the goals of this 3-5 year study is to understand what happens if a tick bites someone when it’s carrying more than one infection.
“Does it make the Lyme disease worse, does it make the Powassan worse, or it doesn’t do neither?” asks Thangamani.
Researchers are also trying to track down the ticks’ path. To do so, they’re asking anyone who gets bit by a tick to mail it in for free testing.
“Send us the zip code so we know which zip code has particular pathogen prevalence and then does it change over time,” said Thangamani.
To have a tick tested, put it in a zip-lock bag with a moist towelette with the following information:
More info: https://thangamani-lab.com/free-tick-testing
You can mail the tick to:
Thangamani Lab 505 Irving Avenue Suite 4209 SUNY Center for Environmental Health and Medicine SUNY Upstate Medical Center Syracuse, NY 13210 ___________________ **Comment** I called and they stated anyone can utilize their FREE tick testing. They will send you the results of what pathogens were found.
https://www.wymt.com/content/news/Going-outside-Watch-out-for–510400381.html News Story in Link
MARTIN COUNTY, KY. (WAVE) – It’s Memorial Day weekend and more people will head outside as the summer season kicks off. While you’re out having fun, be sure to keep an eye out for a tick that is new to the area.
The University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment has received more calls about seeing ticks, but reports that incidents of tick-borne diseases in the state are very low.
People still need to use precautions because ticks are out there. They’re looking to suck blood three times in their lives in order to reproduce. This year’s tick season is different in Kentucky because a new tick has popped up in our area.
“The most common ticks we have are the Lone Star Ticks and the American Dog Tick,” Spencer County Agriculture agent Bryce Roberts said. “The new one we found is the Asian Longhorned Tick.”
Roberts said the Asian Longhorned Tick was found in Eastern Kentucky, in Martin County.
“It’s very concerning because of the diseases they do carry,” Roberts said.
New ticks bring new diseases. Before or when someone gets a tick disease, they see epidemiologist Dr. Paul Schulz.
“The two we encounter the most are Ehrlichia and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever,” Schulz said.
Schulz said the infectious disease department at Norton Healthcare found its first tick-borne disease of the year in March, a sign that tick season could be starting early.
“(In) well over 50 percent of diagnosed infections, the patient didn’t know they had tick exposure,” Schulz said.
People often don’t see or feel when a tick is biting them. However, there are ways to protect yourself and your summer experience: Cover up as much of your skin as you can, use a spray with DEET, avoid overgrown wooded areas, check yourself and your children every night.
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https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/08/08/an-invasive-new-tick-is-spreading-in-the-u-s/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/07/19/rutgers-racing-to-contain-asian-longhorned-tick/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/01/14/multistate-infestation-with-the-exotic-disease-vector-tick-haemaphysalis-longhornis-u-s-aug-2017-sept-2018/Where this tick exists, it is an important vector of human and animal disease agents. In China and Japan, it transmits the severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV), which causes a human hemorrhagic fever (2), and Rickettsia japonica, which causes Japanese spotted fever (3). Studies in Asia identified ticks infected with various species of Anaplasma, Babesia, Borrelia, Ehrlichia, and Rickettsia, and all of these pathogen groups circulate zoonotically in the United States (4,5). In addition, parthenogenetic reproduction, a biologic characteristic of this species, allows a single introduced female tick to generate progeny without mating, thus resulting in massive host infestations.
Authorities have been relatively mum on what this tick transmits and I’ve had to dig to find it. So far there are no noted human illnesses caused by this tick in the U.S., but the ones listed above have occurred other countries. Do they really think this tick isn’t going to acquire disease and transmit here? Maybe in an alternative reality, but then again, the CDC lives in an alternative reality.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31076433/
Ehrlichia muris subsp. eauclairensis is recognized as the etiological agent of human ehrlichiosis in Minnesota and Wisconsin. We describe the culture isolation of this organism from a field-collected tick and detail its relationship to other species of Ehrlichia. The isolate could be grown in a variety of cultured cell lines and was effectively transmitted between Ixodes scapularis ticks and rodents, with PCR and microscopy demonstrating a broad pattern of dissemination in arthropod and mammalian tissues. Conversely, Amblyomma americanum ticks were not susceptible to infection by the Ehrlichia. Histologic sections further revealed that the wild-type isolate was highly virulent for mice and hamsters, causing severe systemic disease that was frequently lethal. A Himar1 transposase system was used to create mCherry and mKate-expressing EmCRT mutants, which retained the ability to infect rodents and ticks.
Importance: Ehrlichioses are zoonotic diseases caused by intracellular bacteria that are transmitted by ixodid ticks. Here we report the culture isolation of bacteria which are closely related to, or the same as the Ehrlichia muris subsp. eauclairensis, a recently recognized human pathogen. EmCRT, obtained from a tick removed from deer at Camp Ripley, Minnesota, is the second isolate of this subspecies described, and is distinctive in that it was cultured directly from a field-collected tick. The isolate’s cellular tropism, pathogenic changes caused in rodent tissues, and tick transmission to and from rodents are detailed in this study. We also describe the genetic mutants created from the EmCRT isolate, which are valuable tools for the further study of this intracellular pathogen.
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**Comment**
OTHER MODES OF TRANSMISSION
Ehrlichia chaffeensis has been shown to survive for over a week in refrigerated blood. Therefore these bacteria may present a risk for transmission through blood transfusion and organ donation. It has also been suggested that ehrlichiosis can be transmitted from mother to child, and through direct contact with slaughtered deer. (14, 15)
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/12/02/everything-thats-known-about-ehrlichiosis/ (Treatments listed)
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/07/24/oklahoma-ehrlichiosis-central/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/03/09/dogs-ehrlichiosis/
https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/25/5/18-0438_article
, L. Mike Conner, Galina E. Zemtsova, Michael L. Levin, Pamela Wong, Madeleine A. Pfaff, and Michael J. Yabsley DOI: 10.3201/eid2505.180438The southeastern United States has multiple tick species that can transmit pathogens to humans. The most common tick species, Amblyomma americanum, is the vector for the causative agents of human ehrlichioses and southern tick-associated rash illness, among others (1). Dermacentor variabilis ticks can transmit the causative agent of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Ixodes scapularis ticks can transmit the causative agents of Lyme disease, babesiosis, and human granulocytic anaplasmosis (1). Although less common in the region, A. maculatum ticks are dominant in specific habitats and can transmit the causative agent of Rickettsia parkeri rickettsiosis (1).
Persons who have occupations that require them to be outside on a regular basis might have a greater risk for acquiring a tickborne disease (2). Although numerous studies have been conducted regarding risks for tickborne diseases among forestry workers in Europe, few studies have been performed in the United States (2,3). The studies that have been conducted in the United States have focused on forestry workers in the northeastern region (2). However, because of variable phenology and densities of ticks, it is useful to evaluate tick activity and pathogen prevalence in various regions and ecosystems.
Burn-tolerant and burn-dependent ecosystems, such as pine (Pinus spp.) and mixed pine forests commonly found in the southeastern United States, have unique tick dynamics compared with those of other habitats (4). The objective of this study was to determine the tick bite risk and tickborne pathogen prevalence in ticks removed from forestry workers working in pine and mixed pine forests in southwest Georgia and northwest Florida, USA.
During June 2009–December 2011, forestry workers in southwestern Georgia (7 counties) and northwestern Florida (1 county) submitted ticks crawling on or attached to them. We identified ticks and tested them for selected pathogens (Appendix). Immature forms of the same species from the same day and person were pooled (<5 nymphs and <20 larvae) for testing.
A total of 53 persons submitted 362 ticks (Table). Excluding larvae, the most common tick species submitted was A. maculatum, followed by A. americanum, I. scapularis, and D. variabilis. On 4 occasions, 1 person submitted A. tuberculatum ticks (3 batches of larvae and 1 batch of nymphs) from a longleaf pine site in Baker County, Georgia. Average submissions per persons were 2.6 ticks (median 1 tick), but 1 person submitted 100 ticks. A total of 24 persons submitted ticks more than once, and they submitted an average of 0.08–6.5 ticks/month (overall average submission rate of 1.1 ticks/month). Three ticks were engorged (1 D. variabilis adult, 1 A. americanum nymph, and 1 Amblyomma sp. nymph); only the Amblyomma sp. nymph was positive for a pathogen (R. amblyommatis).
Thus, forestry workers were found to encounter ticks on a regular basis, and peak encounter rates reflected previously reported tick seasonality in this region (4). Only 3 (0.8%) of the ticks submitted were engorged, indicating prompt removal of most ticks and thus low risk for pathogen transmission. A. maculatum, a fairly uncommon tick in the southeastern United States, was the most commonly submitted tick. However, A. maculatum ticks dominate in regularly burned pine ecosystems (4), which is where most of these workers spent their time.
We observed several unique findings related to pathogens during this study. Larvae and nymphs of A. tuberculatum ticks were submitted on multiple occasions, a tick rarely reported on humans (7). These findings in conjunction with the identification of a novel Rickettsia sp. (6), suggest that additional research is warranted. This study also identified E. chaffeensis and Panola Mountain Ehrlichia in A. maculatum ticks. Although A. americanum ticks are considered the primary vector of Ehrlichia spp., these pathogens have been occasionally reported in questing A. maculatum ticks, suggesting that this tick might be involved in their transmission cycles (5,8). We also detected Panola Mountain Ehrlichia in 1 D. variabilis tick. Thus, further research regarding these alternative tick species as potential vectors of these pathogens is warranted, particularly in the case of A. maculatum ticks, which were a common species on forestry workers and are widespread in this region (4).
At the time of this study, Dr. Gleim was a research scientist at the University of Georgia, Athens, GA. She is currently a disease ecologist at Hollins University, Roanoke, VA. Her research interests include wildlife and zoonotic diseases with a particular emphasis on tickborne diseases.
We thank the persons whom submitted ticks for this study and members of the Yabsley and Levin laboratories for providing laboratory assistance.
This study was supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/University of Georgia (UGA) collaborative grant (#8212, Ecosystem Health and Human Health: Understanding the Ecological Effects of Prescribed Fire Regimes on the Distribution and Population Dynamics of Tick-Borne Zoonoses); the Oxford Research Scholars Program at Oxford College of Emory University; the Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center, the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources (UGA); the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study (UGA) through the Federal Aid to Wildlife Restoration Act (50 Statute 917); and Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study sponsorship from fish and wildlife agencies of member states.
**Comment**
Again, folks down South should be taken seriously when they present with symptoms. BTW: Southern advocates tell me that STARI looks, smells, and feels just like Lyme disease.
Lyme IS in the South: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2016/10/25/hope-for-southerners/
The take home: Clark is finding borrelia (Lyme) strains in the South that the current CDC two-tier testing will never pick up in a thousand years.
The take home: Clark found live Bbsl (bissettii-like strain) in people from the Southeast who had undefined disorders not typical of LD, and were treated for LD even though they were seronegative, proving that B. bissetti is responsible for worldwide human infection.
He also showed DNA of Bbsl in Lone Star ticks which might be a bridge vector of transmission to humans.
Dr. Clark was the first to report finding LD spirochetes in animals and ticks in South Carolina, as well as in wild lizards in South Carolina and Florida. He has documented the presence of LD Borrelia species, Babesia microti, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Rickettsia species, and other tick-borne pathogens in wild animals, ticks, dogs, and humans in Florida and other southern states.
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/05/31/no-lyme-in-the-south-guess-again/
Time to start believing people!
https://www.galaxydx.com/ehrlichiosis-tick-borne-infection-imitates-blood-related-cancers/
Ehrlichiosis, or an infection caused by Ehrlichia species, is a tick-borne illness that causes mild to severe symptoms in approximately 1,500 patients per year in the United States and an unspecified number around the world.
The nonspecific symptoms of the infection can lead to misdiagnosis. Furthermore, research in North Carolina suggests that testing for Ehrlichia species infection is frequently missed, even when other tick-borne disease testing is ordered.
Accurate diagnosis is crucial. Initial lab work for a patient with an Ehrlichia species infection may show anemia and other abnormalities that mimic blood-related cancers, leading physicians down a diagnostic rabbit hole. In one case, a patient had a preliminary diagnosis of T-cell lymphoma, but fortunately had a physician who dug deeper before initiating treatment for cancer. The physician ordered additional diagnostic testing including for tick-borne disease and found the patient was positive on PCR testing for Ehrlichia chaffeensis. The patient recovered with antibiotic treatment.
This case highlights the importance of continuing to develop advanced diagnostics for ehrlichiosis and other tick-borne illnesses. Current diagnostic tests, such as serology and conventional blood smear microscopy, are often not specific enough to accurately differentiate between species and even between Anaplasma and Ehrlichia because of similarities in morphology. Furthermore, serology results are difficult to interpret because the presence of antibodies can indicate current or past infection.
Galaxy Diagnostics offers highly sensitive PCR testing for active Ehrlichia species infections. Our broad-spectrum PCR method detects the DNA of pathogenic Ehrlichia species in blood samples. If a sample is positive, the species is determined using DNA sequencing.
Learn more about ehrlichiosis and the species that can cause the illness at our new Ehrlichiaspecies webpage.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019a). Ehrlichiosis clinical and laboratory diagnosis. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/ehrlichiosis/healthcare-providers/diagnosis.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019b). Ehrlichiosis epidemiology and statistics. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/ehrlichiosis/stats/index.html
Malani, A. et al. (2005). Ehrlichiosis mimicking T-cell lymphoma/leukemia. Blood, 106, 4343. Retrieved from: http://www.bloodjournal.org/content/106/11/4343
University of North Carolina Health Care. (2018). Providers often fail to consider Ehrlichia when treating tick-borne infections: Discovery shows need for statewide educational efforts. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/10/181001171202.htm
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More on Ehrlichiosis: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/12/02/everything-thats-known-about-ehrlichiosis/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/07/24/oklahoma-ehrlichiosis-central/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/03/09/dogs-ehrlichiosis/
https://www.tickcheck.com/statistics?
Each tick submitted for testing contributes to the research being conducted at TickCheck. By keeping records of all the results generated, we have been able to gain valuable insights into disease prevalence and co-infection rates. The comprehensive testing panel has been especially helpful in contributing to this research by ensuring all diseases and coinfections are accounted for when examining a tick.
The information below shows the positive/negative prevalence ratio of selected pathogens we test for. These pathogens were observed in ticks from the United States and Canada. Data set includes tests performed since TickCheck’s founding in 2014 and is updated in real time. (
Go to link at beginning to filter by state. I’ve added the 3 listed for Wisconsin next to the entire sample size. Please note the small sample sizes of WI ticks.
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For more about Tickcheck: https://www.tickcheck.com/about
You can request free tick identification by sending in a quality picture of your tick. Using real-time PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), Tickcheck can determine the presence of certain pathogens with an accuracy level of over 99.9%. All information about how to send in your tick, costs of various tests, time for results, etc. is found here: https://www.tickcheck.com/info/faq
Jonathan Weber is the founder and CEO of TickCheck and became acutely aware of the dangers of tick-borne diseases after his father caught Lyme during a family trip on the Appalachian Trail.
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**Comment**
This information supports current research showing many patients are infected with numerous pathogens causing more severe illness & requiring far more than the CDC’s mono therapy of doxycycline: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/10/30/study-shows-lyme-msids-patients-infected-with-many-pathogens-and-explains-why-we-are-so-sick/
It also supports previous work showing coinfections within ticks: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2017/05/01/co-infection-of-ticks-the-rule-rather-than-the-exception/
But, Patients are STILL being turned away: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/04/22/its-just-crazy-why-is-lyme-disease-treatment-so-difficult-to-find-in-mississippi/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/05/31/no-lyme-in-the-south-guess-again/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2017/10/24/no-lyme-in-oklahoma-yeah-right/
https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2016/09/24/arkansas-kids-denied-lyme-treatment/ “They had the classic symptoms, they had the bulls eye rash, they had the joint pain, they had fevers and had flu like symptoms, yet we were denied treatment for at least two of them and I don’t understand how this is legal,” said Bowerman.
According to Dr. Naveen Patil, Director of the Infectious Disease Program, ADH,
“We don’t have Lyme Disease in Arkansas, we have the ticks that transmit Lyme Disease but we don’t have any recorded cases of Lyme Disease.”
Bowerman also received a letter from the clinic stating doctors would no longer treat her children because she consistently questioned their medical advice and recommendations.
