Small and medium-sized mammals play an important role in the life cycle of tick-borne pathogens in urban habitats. Our aim was to apply the general protocol, DAMA (documentation-assessment-monitoring-action), which is an integrated proposal to build a proactive capacity to understand, anticipate, and respond to the outcomes of accelerating environmental change. Here we tested whether road killed carcasses in urban areas are useful sources of tissue and parasite samples to investigate these species’ contribution to the epidemiology of vector-borne diseases.
We collected 29 road-killed and 6 carcasses with different causes of mortality (23 northern white-breasted hedgehogs and twelve from seven other mammal species) mainly from Budapest, Hungary. We used quantitative and conventional PCRs to determine pathogens in 90 collected tissues (52 from hedgehogs; 38 from other species) and 417 ticks that were only found on hedgehogs.
Tissue samples revealed a wide range of bacteria including human zoonotic pathogens identified as Anaplasma phagocytophilum ecotype I, Borrelia afzelii, B. spielmanii, B. miyamotoi, Rickettsia helvetica and Bartonella species. Among the twenty-three collected hedgehog carcasses 17 (74%) were infected with A. phagocytophilum, six (26%) with B. burgdorferi s.l.,12 (52%) with R. helvetica and 15 (65%) with Rickettsia sp. Furthermore, we report the first detection of Rickettsia sp. infection in European moles and lesser weasel and R. helvetica in stone marten. Through sequencing B. afzelii, R. helvetica, R. monacensis and A. phagocytophilum ecotype I were identified in the ticks removed from the carcasses. We showed that road-killed urban mammal species are exposed to multiple tick-borne pathogens but further studies have to clarify whether they, in fact, also have a role in their maintenance and spread. Our study also demonstrates that roadkill can be used in the risk assessment of potential human infection and in the implementation of the DAMA protocol.
Ozone therapy is taking the world by storm, but is 10x the average dose actually safe? A new but controversial method used by a small number of doctors in Europe and now here in the USA has the ozone world doing battle.
Hear straight from Dr. Rowen why he believes that 10 Pass is not only safe, but also more effective.
Dr. Robert Rowen is an innovator who isn’t afraid to lead the charge on the medical frontier. He has used ozone therapy for many years in his own clinic, is a recognized ozone therapy trainer and has travelled the world to educate doctors on the use of ozone therapy.
Tom Lowe, President, SOPMed, is a gifted inventor and entrepreneur who has developed a passion for alternative medicine. He intends that the Society of Progressive Medical Education (SOPMed) be a platform for fighting human suffering and promoting human flourishing.
It’s a battle that has been raging for decades – the battle against Lyme Disease. Over the years, progress has been made against this dreaded tick-borne illness. But with breakthroughs come even more barriers. Watch this early peek at a new Fox 5 News special on the fight that could be signaling a new chapter in the ongoing bout against Lyme.
Interview with Lyme advocate Pat Smith on the Lyme vaccine. For more: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/07/22/why-we-care-so-strongly-about-a-potential-lyme-vaccine/
Lyme & Tick-Borne Diseases: Turning the Corner Through Research
The Lyme Disease Association & Columbia University’s 19th annual CME scientific conference, will be held October 27 & 28, 2018, Marriott Providence Downtown Hotel, Providence, RI.
Help ensure the success of this event. Please print the flyer CONFERENCE PRINTABLE FLYER and distribute to places in your community such as:
Doctor’s office, local hospital, Urgent Care Centers, School Nurse, Support group meetings, Library, etc. (Note: flyer requires legal sized paper, please adjust your printer accordingly).
The conference is designed for physicians and researchers, but the public is invited, and all registrants can attend the reception and network with conference faculty. The conference will feature 22 faculty consisting of clinicians and researchers from across the US and one from Czechia.
Topics of the conference:
Fallon, Columbia, Phase 1 of a post-mortem study on Borrelia & the brain
Lewis, Northeastern, New treatments for Borrelia persisters
Molins, CDC, Biomarkers of Lyme; Naviaux, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, Metabolomic features of chronic illness
Aucott, Johns Hopkins, Lyme research updates
Robinson, Stanford, B cell responses in Lyme; Skare, Texas A&M, Lyme pathogenesis
Oaklander, Harvard, small fiber peripheral neuropathy; Pal, University of Maryland, Borrelia immune evasion and persistence
Platts-Mills, UVA School of Medicine, alpha-gal meat allergy
Tokarz, Columbia, serologic diagnosis of TBD; Occi
Rutgers, invasive longhorn tick in the US; Gulia-Nuss, University of Nevada, genetic modifications of ticks
Buchthal, MIT, genetically modified mice
Ben Mamoun, Yale, Babesia treatments
Patel & Reece, Brown, Powassan
Spector, Duke, cancer research & the diagnosis and treatment of TBD
Delaney, Columbia, Borreliamiyamotoi
Szantyr, Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, prevention strategies and vaccine development
Flegr, National Institute of Mental Health, Czechia, Bartonella, toxoplasmosis & psychiatric effects
Maloney, Partnership for Tick-Borne Diseases Education, concurrent TBD case report & literature review.
The following video by Dr. Jay Davidson is quite timely. When it starts getting darker and colder with the wind howling & blowing leaves everywhere, watching the Harry Potter series is a fall rite of passage in our home. After finishing Order of the Phoenix, I was struck by how mainstream media lacks any sort of credibility and is actually quite similar to The Daily Prophet in Harry Potter.
If my old journalism professors are still alive, I wonder what they are thinking. They gave us a daily diatribe on the importance of only presenting the facts and letting the reader decide what to think. Now, news stories are little more than opinion pieces with exaggerated and biased “facts.” It is rare to read a story which presents both sides of an argument. You definitely get the feeling you are being sold something.
And you are.
The following video hits on numerous topics, some health related, some not, but is an important exercise in considering “facts.” If you find yourself adverse to listening to different viewpoints, stop and reflect on why. The saddest thing I’ve observed is the growing inability to listen to differing viewpoints. In the end we may believe differently, but we should never lose our ability to listen with respect and debate ideas.
P.s.If you are extremely sick and irritable, you probably want to bypass this story! There will be a time to watch this but if you are filled up with pathogens affecting your ability to process ideas, now is NOT the time. Heaven forbid I make you more irritable than you already are! Been there, done that. Deep breath and smell the roses. Rainbow ponies…..rainbow ponies….
Approx 1 hour
In today’s podcast, I break down my definition of drinking mainstream media’s Kool-Aid–not just in the health and wellness space, but across the board. I truly believe there is an awakening happening, where we’re ready to question everything we’ve been told we “should do”: supplements, diet, college and career path, exercise, buying a home, our banking system, health insurance, gluten, sunscreen, and so much more.
What are your thoughts: Are we brainwashed by mainstream media? Is this content too “out there” for you, or do you agree that we need to start questioning everything we’ve been told (from our healthcare, to our diet, finances, banking systems, and more). Let me know in the comments–I’d really love to hear from you on this. I always strive to make content you’re interested in!
