Archive for the ‘Testing’ Category

Citizen Scientists Help Track Tick Borne Illness Exposure

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/07/180712141710.htm

Who got bit? By mailing in 16,000 ticks, citizen scientists help track disease exposures

Study offers new insight into potential exposure to tick-borne diseases

Date:  July 12, 2018
Source:  Colorado State University
Summary:
A bite from a disease-carrying tick can transmit a serious, potentially fatal infection, such as Lyme disease. But many ticks go unnoticed and unreported. Now, with the help of citizen scientists, ecologists are offering better insight into people’s and animals’ potential exposure to tick-borne diseases — not just the disease reporting and prevalence that’s only tracked when people get sick.
Western black-legged ticks.
Credit: Ervic Aquino/California Department of Public Health

A bite from a disease-carrying tick can transmit a serious, potentially fatal infection, such as Lyme disease. But many ticks go unnoticed and unreported.

Now, with the help of citizen scientists, ecologists at Colorado State University and Northern Arizona University are offering better insight into people’s and animals’ potential exposure to tick-borne diseases — not just the disease reporting and prevalence tracking that only occur when people get sick.

The result is a study published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE. The team was funded by the Bay Area Lyme Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to informing the public about Lyme disease and finding a cure. Foundation officials urge people to take tick bites seriously, since early detection is key to treating most conditions.

The study’s lead authors are Daniel Salkeld, a research scientist in CSU’s Department of Biology, and longtime collaborator Nathan Nieto of Northern Arizona University.

“Our study may be a new way of understanding exposure to tick-borne diseases,” explained Salkeld, a disease ecologist. “Normally the approach is to rely on reported disease cases, or to look at ticks in natural habitats. Our data represent that in-between, middle ground: It shows when people or animals got bitten, and where, and what they got exposed to.”

Salkeld and Nieto’s study examined over 16,000 ticks sent in by citizen scientists from 49 states (all but Alaska) and Puerto Rico. Nearly 90 percent of the ticks were reported to have been removed from either humans or dogs. The researchers tested for several bacteria, including those that cause Lyme disease and babesiosis. One of the pathogens they tested for, Borrelia miyamotoi, was discovered relatively recently, and is not typically tracked by public health officials.

In their data, the researchers found 83 counties, in 24 states, where ticks carrying disease-causing bacteria had never been previously documented. The scientists’ original goal was to collect about 2,000 ticks, and they expected most to come from California’s San Francisco Bay Area. The nationwide response to their experiment underscores the public’s intense interest in better understanding tick diseases.

“The overwhelming participation from residents throughout the country and the surprising number of counties impacted demonstrates that a great need exists throughout the country for this information,” said Nieto, who led the diagnostic testing of each tick received in the mail. “This study offers a unique and very valuable perspective, as it looks at risk to humans that goes beyond the physician-reported infection rates and involved ticks that were found on or near people.“

The researchers stress that citizen science data has limitations; some of their findings may be tied to human error, or lack of access to information. For example, the citizen scientists reported where they lived, and where the ticks were found, but not where they had traveled recently.

Tick scientists like Salkeld and Nieto can typically collect around 100 ticks for a localized study. Inviting citizen scientists to send in ticks opened up a whole new way of seeing how such ticks are distributed, and their activity patterns. Approaches like this could lead to new insights such as how diseases spread, and new human pathogens yet to be discovered.

“For example, we could start to look at what species of ticks are active, when, and where,” Salkeld said. “And how does this differ from across the north or south, or the Midwest to California? There could be all kinds of subtle variations.”

Story Source:

Materials provided by Colorado State University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Journal Reference:

  1. Nathan C. Nieto, W. Tanner Porter, Julie C. Wachara, Thomas J. Lowrey, Luke Martin, Peter J. Motyka, Daniel J. Salkeld. Using citizen science to describe the prevalence and distribution of tick bite and exposure to tick-borne diseases in the United States. PLOS ONE, 2018; 13 (7): e0199644 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0199644
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Related article:
  • ticks in places they weren’t supposed to be
  • ticks are born carrying disease and do not require a blood meal to pick it up 
  • ALL life stages of common ticks (deer, Western black-legged, and lone star) carry the bacteria that cases Lyme disease
  • they found Babesia in 26 counties across 10 states which
  • isn’t even a reportable illness to the public health department  
  • all of this blows holes in commonly held doctrine 

Canada is also making use of citizen scientists for the tick borne illness problem:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/04/10/canadian-citizen-scientists-helping-with-tick-surveillance/

 

 

 

Category:

Activism, Babesia, Borrelia Miyamotoi (Relapsing Fever Group), Lyme, research, Testing, Ticks

22% Bb Antibodies in Polish Forest Workers

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/29963907/

Seroprevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi in forest workers from inspectorates with different forest types in Lower Silesia, SW Poland: preliminary study.

Kiewra D, et al. Int J Environ Health Res. 2018.

Abstract

To estimate the Lyme borreliosis (LB) risk for forest workers, totally 646 blood samples were tested for IgG and IgM anti-Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. (anti-B.b.) antibody occurrence using ELISA tests confirmed with western blot. To clarify the varied LB risk, additionally, the data from the Forest Data Bank determining the detailed forest habitat type in particular forest inspectorates were used. The occurrence of the anti-B.b. antibody was confirmed in 22% (8.7% IgM, 17.8% IgG) of forest workers. Analysis of the influence of the habitat type (forest types) indicated the significant positive impact of the occurrence of the deciduous and mixed-deciduous forests on the seroprevalence of anti-B.b. IgG level among forestry workers. However, the share of forest type cannot be the only factor taken into account when assessing risk.

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**Comment**

IgM is the first antibody that the body produces in an acute infection or recent exposure. IgG refers to a later response.  These forest workers had more antibodies relating to older exposure.  It also makes sense that there would be a significant impact in deciduous and mixed-deciduous forests on seroprevalence.

For more on Bb in Poland:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/04/06/prevalence-of-bb-in-poland/  The results of the study clearly show that ticks infected with Borrelia burgdorferi inhabit all regions of Poland. The results are consistent with National Institute of Hygiene data which indicates that Lyme disease cases are recorded in all regions of Poland.

More on forest workers:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/05/27/seroprevalence-of-bb-in-belgian-forestry-workers-assoc-risk-factors/  Sixty-seven of the 310 workers were seropositive for Lyme disease (LD), leading to a seroprevalence of 21.6%. The seroprevalence was higher among forest workers visiting forests more frequently (P = 0.003) or who reported over 100 tick bites (P-value < 0.001). The intensity of tick bites and the use of protection measures against tick bites have a positive impact on LD seroprevalence while the quantity of shadow from trees at ground level had a negative one.  This study showed that forest workers are a population at risk for LD and, by extension, at risk for various tick-borne diseases. I

 

Category:

Lyme, research, Testing

Study Finds 27 New Sequence Types of Borreliella afzelii – 2 Significant For EM’s Whereas Another Significant For Neuroborreliosis

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/29954419/

Multilocus sequence typing of clinical Borreliella afzelii strains: population structure and differential ability to disseminate in humans.

Gallais F, et al.
Parasit Vectors. 2018 Jun 28;11(1):374. doi: 10.1186/s13071-018-2938-x.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Lyme borreliosis in humans results in a range of clinical manifestations, thought to be partly due to differences in the pathogenicity of the infecting strain. This study compared European human clinical strains of Borreliella afzelii (previously named Borrelia afzelii) using multilocus sequence typing (MLST) to determine their spatial distribution across Europe and to establish whether there are associations between B. afzelii genotypes and specific clinical manifestations of Lyme borreliosis. For this purpose, typing was performed on 63 strains, and data on a further 245 strains were accessed from the literature.

RESULTS: All 308 strains were categorized into 149 sequence types (STs), 27 of which are described here for the first time. Phylogenetic and goeBURST analyses showed short evolutionary distances between strains. Although the main STs differed among the countries with the largest number of strains of interest (Germany, the Netherlands, France and Slovenia), the B. afzelii clinical strains were less genetically structured than those previously observed in the European tick population. Two STs were found significantly more frequently in strains associated with clinical manifestations involving erythema migrans, whereas another ST was found significantly more frequently in strains associated with disseminated manifestations, especially neuroborreliosis.

CONCLUSIONS: The MLST profiles showed low genetic differentiation between B. afzelii strains isolated from patients with Lyme borreliosis in Europe. Also, clinical data analysis suggests the existence of lineages with differential dissemination properties in humans.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Category:

Lyme, research, Testing, Ticks

World’s 1st: French ME/CFS Assoc. Decides to Clinically Evaluate the CFS Pathogenisis Model With CADI Model

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/worlds-first-french-cfs-association-decides-evaluate-manuel-gea-/

World’s first: The French ME/CFS Association decides to clinically evaluate the CFS pathogenesis model produced by Bio-Modeling Systems

Published on July 17, 2018
Manuel GEA – Bio-Modeling Systems

BMSystems has constructed a CADI™ model that, by integrating immunological dysregulations with their systemic metabolic, physiological and cognitive consequences, describes and explains the causal CFS mechanisms and their modes ofclinical progression, leading to the formulation of potential targeted treatments.

Paris, France July 10, 2018: The Scientific Committee of the French Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Association (ASFC) has decided to evaluate in clinic the CADI™ (Computer Assisted Deductive Integration) model of CFS pathogenesis mechanisms produced by Bio-Modeling Systems (BMSystems) to bring novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies faster to patients. The two organizations will combine their competencies to improve understanding of the physiopathology and to accelerate treatment discovery for this poorly served, debilitating disorder for which challenges are considerable and therapeutic approaches non-satisfactory. To this end, the partners have launched an innovative research program which combines the scientific and clinical know-how of the Scientific and Medical teams attached to the Association with BMSystems’ heuristic CADI™ Discovery modeling platform and the scientific talents of its team of biologists.

More specifically, BMSystems has constructed a CADI™ model that, by integrating immunological dysregulations with their systemic metabolic, physiological and cognitive consequences, describes and explains the causal CFS mechanisms and their modes of clinical progression, leading to the formulation of potential targeted treatments. The purpose of this collaboration is to evaluate in the clinic the CADI™ model’s predictions and open new avenues that will be decisive for the understanding, the diagnosis and the treatment of the disease. The CADI™ model construction was entirely self-financed by BMSystems, revealing its confidence to jointly identify and characterize mechanisms that will quicker provide specific combined therapies to the patients.

The scientific program is placed under the shared leadership of Pr. Jean-Dominique de Korwin (Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital of Nancy, Lorraine University) President of the Scientific Committee of the ASFC, Dr. François Iris, founder & CSO of BMSystems and Dr. Thanos Beopoulos, Integrative Biologist at BMSystems.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a major, yet severely under-estimated public health burden that needs novel, disruptive conceptual reconsideration that can drive the renewal and the evolution of therapies.

About ME/CFS: Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome remains a debilitating condition for the patient and a confusing one for the physicians, both because of diagnostic difficulties and poorly codified management. Despite numerous studies, its pathophysiology remains unclear, but a multifactorial origin is suspected with triggering (infections) and maintenance (psychological) factors as well as the persistence of inflammatory (low-grade inflammation, microglial activation…), immunologic (decrease of NK cells, abnormal cytokine production, reactivity to a variety of allergens, role of estrogens…) and muscular (mitochondrial dysfunction and failure of bioenergetic performance) abnormalities at the origin of multiple dysfunctions (endocrine, neuromuscular, cardiovascular, digestive…). The frequency of CSF is variously appreciated, depending on the criteria of definition, with prevalence between 0.2 and 2.6% in Western countries. The ratio of women to men is 4/1, with predominance in young adults (20-40 years) but with possible attack at any age and a genetic predisposition. Between 836,000 and 2.5 million Americans and between 150,000 and 300,000 French people would suffer from CFS with often severe degrees of disability generating high health costs and distress.

About Bio-Modeling Systems (BMSystems):

Bio-Modeling Systems, an innovative company founded in 2004, is the first and, to date, only company to successfully create in-silico heuristic models validated in-vivo. BMSystems’ models have been built by its biologists using an integrated IT solution called CADI ™ (Computer Assisted Deductive Integration) and have led to discoveries and patents in the fields of infectious diseases, oncology, neurology, psychiatry, dermatology, immunology, metabolic disorders, innovative bioprocesses for industrial biotech and the creation of new companies exploiting these patents. BMSystems’ models describe the biological phenomena involved in pathological states and provide novel mechanistic integrations to explain the cause of certain diseases, identify and select predictive biomarkers, offer new combinations of molecules and new therapeutic strategies, thereby contributing to the development of Mechanism-Based Medicine.

For more information and access to presentations & publications, please visit http://www.bmsystems.net.

About the French Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Association (ASFC):

ASFC is the only association representing patients with ME/CFS approved by the French Ministry of Health in 2015. The association provides a phone hotline and organizes regular meetings between patients and volunteers everywhere in France, and an annual meeting with expert scientists. ASFC welcomes everyone suffering from unexplained chronic fatigue and ME/CFS, informs and refers them to specialized centres for an accurate diagnosis. The main missions of the Scientific Council are to inform and advise the ASFC on the development of knowledge on ME/CSF and patient care, to propose research protocols and strategic directions for recognition of ME/CFS in France.

President of ASFC: Mr. Robert SCHENK

Members of the Scientific Committee of the ASFC involved in the project: Pr. François-Jérôme AUTHIER, Pr. Ingrid BANOVIC, Dr. Grégoire COZON (PhD), Dr. Stéphane DELLIAUX (PhD), Mrs Isabelle FORNASIERI (PhD), Dr. Alaa GHALI, Pr. Yves JAMMES, Mrs Emmanuelle JOUET (PhD), Pr. Jean-Dominique de KORWIN, Pr. Bernard LEBLEU, Dr. Frédérique RETORNAZ.

For more information, please visit http://www.asso-sfc.org

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**Comment**

There is no doubt in my mind that technology like this will be the wave of medicine.  I’m no expert on ME/CFS but regarding Lyme/MSIDS, psychiatric issues need to be put in the equation.  

Also, this technology is only as good as those inputting the markers and in the case of Lyme/MSIDS there is a vast polarization in the medical community of those who believe it to be a benign illness cured by 21 days of doxycycline and those who believe it can infiltrate every organ of the body eventually leading to death without proper long-term treatment.  Technology must include all sides and it must adapt and change to new information.

My only other concern is that doctors use this as only one of many tools in their differential diagnoses because particularly with Lyme/MSIDS, people fall through the cracks due to “atypical” or “rare” presentations.  In my experience these aren’t “atypical” or “rare” at all but have simply not been reported on – therefore, doctors and researchers just aren’t aware of them.  In the case of Lyme/MSIDS the worst thing a researcher could use would be old Lyme/MSIDS research (and yes, even new meta-analysis from past research) as that would only represent the Lyme Cabal and their pigeon-holing this complex illness into a square of their own making which leaves out a huge chunk of suffering patients.  They also smugly state that this chunk is only 10-20% of patients.  I say the percentage is much higher and is growing daily.

 

Category:

Activism, Lyme, Testing

Rutgers Racing to Contain Asian Longhorned Tick

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2018/07/this_is_how_dna_helps_rutgers_scientists_crack_the.html

It spreads SFTS (sever fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome), “an emerging hemorrhagic fever,” causing fever, fatigue, headache, nausea, muscle pain, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, disease of the lymph nodes, and conjunctival congestion, but the potential impact of this tick on tickborne illness is not yet known. In other parts of the world, this Longhorned tick, also called the East Asian or bush tick, has been associated with several tickborne diseases, such as spotted fever rickettsioses, Anaplasma, Ehrlichia, and Borrelia, the causative agent of Lyme Disease.

For a 2016 literature review on SFTS: http://infectious-diseases-and-treatment.imedpub.com/research-advances-on-epidemiology-of-severefever-with-thrombocytopenia-syndrome-asystematic-review-of-the-literature.php?aid=17986
Although the clinical symptoms of SFTS and HGA are similar to each other, but the treatment methods of the two diseases are totally different. Doctors notice that the biggest difference between the clinical symptom of SFTS and HGA is that SFTS patients generally without skin rash, the dermorrhagia is also not seriously, and few massive hemorrhage cases were reported [23]. It is also reported that SFTS patients had gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, which are rarely observed in HGA patients [2]. So these differences can be used as the auxiliary basis of differential diagnosis.
At present, there is still no specific vaccine or antiviral therapy for SFTSV infection. Supportive treatment, including plasma, platelet, granulocyte colony stimulating factor (GCSF), recombinant human interleukin 11, and gamma globulin is the most essential part of case treatment [44]. Meanwhile, some measures were taken to maintain water, electrolyte balance and treat complications are also very important.
Ribavirin is reported to be effective for treating Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) infections and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, but it is still inadequate to judge the effect of ribavirin on SFTS patients because of the study limitation without adequate parameters were investigated [45]. Host immune responses play an important role in determining the severity and clinical outcome in patients with infection by SFTSV.
For Viral treatment options: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2016/03/28/combating-viruses/

And lastly, please know ticks parasitize one another, potentially spreading all manner of diseases to humans.  This fact also shoots holes in the regurgitated mantra that only certain ticks carry certain pathogens.  If they are feasting on one another, they can potentially infect each other and then us:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/03/07/tick-bites-tick-hyperparasitism/

 

 

Category:

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