Archive for the ‘Lyme’ Category

Study: SOT Potential Treatment For Viruses & Lyme Disease

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36412742/

Supportive Oligonucleotide Therapy (SOT) as a Potential Treatment for Viral Infections and Lyme Disease: Preliminary Results

Panagiotis Apostolou 1, Aggelos Iliopoulos 1, Georgios Beis 1, Ioannis Papasotiriou 2

Free PMC article

Abstract

Antisense therapy is widely used as an alternative therapeutic option for various diseases. RNA interference might be effective in infections, through the degradation of messenger RNA and, therefore, translation process. Hence, proteins essential for microorganisms and viruses’ proliferation and metabolism are inhibited, leading to their elimination. The present study aimed to evaluate the use of oligonucleotide in patients infected by Epstein-Barr (EBV) or Herpes Simplex Viruses 1/2 or with Lyme Disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi. Blood samples were collected from 115 patients and the different species were characterized using molecular biology techniques. Then, SOT molecules (Supportive Oligonucleotide Therapy), which are specific small interfering RNA (siRNA), were designed, produced, and evaluated, for each specific strain. Oligonucleotides were administered intravenously to patients and then a quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction was used to evaluate the effectiveness of SOT. This study revealed that for Lyme Disease, one or two SOT administrations can lead to a statistically significant decrease in DNA copies, while for viruses, two or three administrations are required to achieve a statistically significant reduction in the genetic material. These preliminary results indicate that antisense SOT therapy can be considered a potential treatment for viral as well as Lyme diseases.

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The challenge with Lyme is correctly identifying the patient’s infections as they are typically coinfected with many. Further, it’s all based on using PCR to detect the DNA of various bacteria which is known to find Lyme only 30% of the time.  Further, many of the organisms with Lyme/MSIDS aren’t found in the blood so trying to detect it there is futile (another reason this is so hard to test, diagnose, and treat.)

Using genetic code for a treatment for this is like trying to catch a greased pig.  Lyme in particular changes its outer surface protein which means what goes into you isn’t what comes out of you as the organism mutates to survive.  Yet another reason it’s difficult treating this and why there has never and will never be a Lyme vaccine worth its weight in salt.  You can’t pin something down that changes.

Personally, all this work on treatments using genetics scares the bajeebers out of me.  Hopefully the past three years have caused all of us to pause and consider the implications of using genes and their ability to alter genetic code.  Also, what works in a petri dish often doesn’t work in reality.

Of course, at the end of the day, we are all big boys and girls and have to make our own decisions.  What works for one often doesn’t work for another and if you do your reading, are convinced of its merits, and want to try this, then by all means do it.  If you have success, or if you don’t, please let me know.  Often the best way we move forward is by educating one another on various treatments and health changes.

Category:

Lyme, research, Testing, Treatment, Viruses

Yolanda Hadid’s Daughter Bella Shares Update on Lyme Disease Journey

https://www.bravotv.com/the-daily-dish/rhobh-yolanda-hadid-daughter-bella-on-lyme-disease  Video Here

Yolanda Hadid’s Daughter Bella Shares Update on Lyme Disease Journey

The RHOBH family has been open about their journey with Lyme disease over the years.
By Jocelyn Vena
4/4/23

Bella Hadid recently shared an update on her health and journey with Lyme Disease, which she was diagnosed with several years ago. The model, along with her mom, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum Yolanda Hadid, and her brother, Anwar Hadid, have all also been diagnosed with Lyme disease.

After opening up about a tooth infection, Bella noted that “this made my Lyme flare up, which means the Lyme is attacking the places that are suffering ie tooth, jaw, guy, brain, spine, bones etc oh, and the entire nervous system,” according to E! News. She continued, “Any minor trauma to the body whether it’s physically or mentally can cause Lyme to flare up. My jaw has been so inflamed, and would flare up/inflame randomly when I was/am overly stressed or over working. Some days it’s okay! And some days are difficult. But when my jaw/nerves started to hurt on an aggressive level; it just went 0-100. And now we’re here!”  (See link for article)

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For more on tooth issues and Lyme:

Category:

Activism, Dentistry, Lyme

Woman With Lyme Locked in Psych Ward For Two Months Against Her Will & Without a Psychiatric Diagnosis

The following English translation of the story is done through an automated process known as neural translations.  Original article here. Although a year old it serves as a poignant reminder of the reality in Lymeland:  https://europahoy.news/2022/08/mujer-de-24-anos-2-meses-en-planta-psiquiatria-en-el-hubu-contra-su-voluntad-y-sin-diagnostico-psiquiatrico/

https://www.europeantimes.news/2022/08/24-yo-woman-2-months-locked-in-psychiatric-ward-against-her-will-and-without-psychiatric-diagnosis/

24 yo woman, 2 months “locked” in psychiatric ward against her will and without psychiatric diagnosis

24 yo woman, 2 months “locked” in psychiatric ward against her will and without psychiatric diagnosis
In cases like this it seems that where they should take better care of us, they cover for each other at the expense of the freedom of a defenseless person.
ByJuan Sanchez Gil

Rocío Muñoz, Carla’s mother, tells Europa Hoy a story that will not leave you unmoved. A young girl, 24 years old, held against her will in the HUBU, specifically in the psychiatric ward of the University Hospital of Burgos (HUBU), now two months since June 10 and under psychiatric treatment when in reality she has a physical illness and no mental disorder as confirmed again and again from the HUBU to the family.

At the moment, Rocío tells us, Carla is under psychiatric medication for no logical reason. “The real diagnosis is advanced Lyme disease, transmitted by the bite of a tick, according to diagnostic tests carried out by doctors outside the hospital.

The symptoms of this disease are very varied: from digestive, vascular, neurological, endocrine to fibromyalgia-like symptoms, as well as a drop in the immune system. The type of test necessary to detect this disease is not carried out by the Social Security because of its high rate of false negatives, and therefore it is necessary to go to external laboratories where tests such as elispot, phagos test, Galaxy nanotrap antigen test and Paldispot, among others, are carried out.  (See link for article)

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SUMMARY:

  • Patient’s symptoms were: weight loss, muscle and joint pain, vascular ulcers, oedema in lower limbs, livedo reticularis, vertebral fractures, narrowing of mesenteric artery, and recurrent infections due to immunosuppression.
  • Unable to find a reason for these ailments her IV’s for treatment were removed and the doctors transferred her to the psych ward where she is isolated, prevented from having a cell phone and receiving visits
  • She has been given unnecessary treatment causing side-effects with possible irreversible damage.
  • She is not allowed to participate in the medical decision-making process and has no human rights.

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I guarantee you that if the U.S. moves forward and hands the WHO the power it desires, there will be much, much more of this tyranny.  It’s important to dismantle the monopoly on medicine as well as science before they become runaway trains.  Many had a small taste of this tyranny during the past three years with COVID if they were unfortunate enough to need hospital care.  These patients, due to kickbacks to hospitals from the government for following dangerously ineffective measures, that nurses called “brutal,” and had zero rights and were held hostage through medical kidnapping. In short, hospitals became government prostitutes.

We saw an unprecedented need for legal interaction in the medical system to get appropriate treatment and care.

Category:

Activism, Lyme

CPAC Warns: Lyme Risk Higher Than Ever

https://www.lymedisease.org/capc-parasite-forecast-2023/

CAPC warns that Lyme disease risk is higher than ever

April 20, 2023

The nonprofit Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) — the nation’s leading source on parasitic diseases that threaten the health of pets and people — is warning that the risk of Lyme disease is higher than ever.

In its 2023 Parasite Forecast, CAPC documents how the blacklegged ticks that spread Lyme disease are expanding into new geographical areas. This increases the risk of Lyme disease outside of historically endemic places like the Northeast and Upper Midwest.

Parasite infections are real and can be harmful and even deadly to pets and people. Lyme disease is a predominant One Health issue, an approach calling for the collaborative efforts of multiple disciplines working to attain optimal health for animals, people and the environment.

11 years of forecasts

“Because of the zoonotic potential of pathogens like Lyme disease, we started providing annual forecasts eleven years ago to alert communities about the risks they pose to people and pets,” says Dr. Christopher Carpenter, DVM, and Chief Executive Officer of CAPC.

“Lyme disease, in particular, is an important One Health pathogen that occurs in both veterinary and human medical settings. CAPC’s Pet Parasite Forecast is critical to alerting pet owners, veterinarians and physicians to the risks this year and reinforcing CAPC’s recommendation that all pets need to be annually tested and protected year-round.”

In its 2023 annual forecast, CAPC reports the risk of acquiring Lyme disease in 2023 is elevated due to the expansive nature of the blacklegged tick vector (Ixodes scapularis).

This increase in Lyme prevalence can be attributed to land use, human population growth, urbanization, and changes in wildlife host density and location. Risks have also increased due to rehoming of pets, as well as changes in:

  • Distribution and prevalence of vector (tick) populations
  • Shifting wildlife populations and their infiltration into newly developed and reclaimed areas
  • Short- and long-term changes in climatic conditions
  • Changes in habitat due to natural or human-induced processes

Lyme Disease Forecast

For 2023, CAPC predicts Lyme disease is a high threat and continues to expand southward and westward outside of the historically high-risk areas in the Northeast and Upper Midwest, including Wisconsin, Minnesota and the upper peninsula of Michigan.

There is a higher-than-average seroprevalence predicted in northeastern Tennessee, western Michigan and Ohio, with high-risk “hot spots” expected in northwestern and southwestern Michigan, and southern and northeastern Ohio.

A higher-than-normal risk is also expected in North Dakota, northeastern South Dakota, Iowa, Illinois, and eastern Kentucky. The southward movement of Lyme is evident in the increasing risk in the Carolinas and Tennessee.

In addition, CAPC reports a northern expansion into Canada, including southern regions of Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba, as well as on New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, due to increased Lyme detection in Canadian dogs. Pets living in or traveling to these areas are considered at high risk.

Testing and Prevention Strategies

The 2023 forecasts – supported by ongoing research by parasitologists and statisticians in leading academic institutions across the United States – highlight areas where more should be done to lower the risk of companion animals’ exposure to disease vectors, such as ticks.

The foundation of these prevention strategies are recommendations that veterinarians and pet owners test their pets annually for disease and protect their pets with products that kill or repel ticks year-round.

A vaccination for Lyme disease should always be considered for pets in high-risk areas. Lyme disease, in particular, is an important One Health pathogen that impacts the health of both pets and people.

Veterinarians play an important role in preventing zoonotic disease in pets, as well as people, by implementing effective parasite control programs. In regions with historically high prevalence and in forecasted regions of increased risk, veterinarians should reinforce their recommendations of aggressive tick control.

CAPC One Health Study

Research conducted by CAPC underscores the value of CAPC’s prevalence maps and emphasizes the importance of a One Health approach to tick-borne diseases. In 2019, a CAPC study confirmed dogs safeguard humans serving as sentinels to alert humans where they are at greatest risk for tick-borne Lyme disease.

“With dogs being tested annually for exposure to the pathogen that causes Lyme disease, we were able to study over seven years of nationwide canine diagnostic data, representing more than 16 million data points — something difficult to achieve when studying ticks and the environment directly. And unlike the challenges with access to human medical records, anonymous veterinary data does not have these privacy concerns,” said Dr. Michael Yabsley, a CAPC Board Member and professor in the Department of Population Health, College of Veterinary Medicine and Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources at the University of Georgia.

Results from the study – “Quantifying the relationship between human Lyme disease and Borrelia burgdorferi exposure in domestic dogs” – published in the prestigious, peer-reviewed Geospatial Health quantified the relationship between incidences of tick exposure in domestic dogs to human Lyme disease. The model established in this research broke new ground by giving residents, travelers and health care providers a county-level map to help them identify areas of high Lyme risk across the country.

“By combining sophisticated statistical modeling with this invaluable canine data, we’re enabling veterinary medicine to benefit human medicine,” said Dr. Stella Self, assistant professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at University of South Carolina. “This research represents the first step on the long road to developing a forecast for human Lyme disease.”

30-Day Forecast Maps for Pet Owners

Pet owners who want to monitor the activity in their county throughout the year have access to 30-Day Parasite Forecast Maps at http://www.petdiseasealerts.org. These maps, developed exclusively by CAPC, provide a local forecast for every county in the continental United States on a monthly basis. This free service helps to remind pet owners of the continuous risk in their area and the importance of annual parasite testing and year-round protection.

“Because tick-borne diseases like Lyme are ever-changing, the 30-Day Pet Parasite forecasts at http://www.petdiseasealerts.org are an invaluable tool to protect both pets and people with monthly updates that show the risk for Lyme disease in their area,” said Dr. Rick Marrinson, Past President/Board Member for CAPC and owner of Longwood Veterinary Clinic in Longwood, Florida.

Other Parasite Spread in 2023

In addition to Lyme disease, CAPC forecasts that heartworm disease, which is transmitted by mosquitoes, and tick-borne diseases ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis, continue to spread throughout the United States in 2023. Veterinarians and pet owners are encouraged to discuss how to effectively address the increased prevalence. Annual testing and year-round use of preventive products remains the best means of providing comprehensive parasite control and disease prevention.

How the Forecasts are Created

The annual CAPC Pet Parasite Forecasts are a collaborative effort between parasitologists and statisticians in leading academic institutions across the United States. These scientists engage in ongoing research and data interpretation to better understand and monitor vector-borne disease agent transmission and changing life cycles of parasites. The forecasts are based on many factors, including temperature, precipitation, and population density.

About the Companion Animal Parasite Council

The Companion Animal Parasite Council is an independent not-for-profit foundation comprised of parasitologists, veterinarians, as well as medical, public health and other professionals, who provide information for the optimal control of internal and external parasites that threaten the health of pets and people.

Formed in 2002, CAPC works to help veterinary professionals and pet owners develop the best practices in parasite management that protect pets from parasitic infections and reduce the risk of zoonotic parasite transmission.

SOURCE OF PRESS RELEASE: The Companion Animal Parasite Council 

Category:

Activism, Anaplasmosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme, research, Testing, Ticks

Back From Lyme Disease & Career Abyss, Jimmy Walker Grabs Lead At Heritage

https://www.si.com/golf/news/back-from-lyme-disease-and-career-abyss-jimmy-walker-grabs-lead-at-heritage

Back From Lyme Disease and Career Abyss, Jimmy Walker Grabs Lead at Heritage

Jimmy Walker, who won the PGA Championship in 2016, is back on tour thanks to a one-year exemption. He’s looking to make the most of it.

HILTON HEAD, S.C. – Jimmy Walker is like Kodak, an iconic brand name that was known by everyone until the world passed it by and film morphed into digital.

Walker may not have been as iconic as Kodak or Blackberry, but for a stretch from 2014 to 2016, Walker had six wins, including the 2016 PGA Championship. He was a force.

As time went on, instead of contending on the weekend he was back home, at first wondering where his game had gone and then eventually resigned to the fact that it was over.

A bout with Lyme disease near the end of 2016 caused irreparable harm and from there his confidence and to some extend his ability ebbed away.

And like Kodak, the golfing world passed him by.  (See link for article)

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**Comment**

The article points out that the pro golfer was also infected with EBV, West Nile virus, two different types of bacterial pneumonia, as well as Lyme disease.  He suffered “brain to body disconnects” and lack of energy which caused depression.

Now he’s back playing golf.

‘’I’m still a competitor, I still want to win, I still want to have all those feels and have all that built inside me,” Walker said. “And I mean, that doesn’t change, right?

“I want it bad. So that’s the bottom line.”

And we out here in Lymeland are all rooting for him to win as well, but winning in golf pales in comparison to overcoming Lyme/MSIDS!

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Category:

Activism, Lyme, Psychological Aspects