0 Blog Log: Spirochetes Unwound on Flawed Study of Topical Antibiotics

Remember that article on topical azithromycin I posted earlier this month? Our favorite spirochete blogger has some criticism about the research on which it was based here: http://spirochetesunwound.blogspot.com/2011/09/flawed-study-claiming-prevention-of.html A flawed study claiming prevention of Lyme spirochete infection with topical antibiotics Two recent papers tested the effectiveness of topical antibiotics in preventing Borrelia burgdorferi infection in mice following a tick bite. Infection by the Lyme disease spirochete was successfully...

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1 LDA-Columbia Lyme 2011 Conference Line-up

On October 1 and 2, there will be a combined LDA/Columbia-Lyme Conference held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Below is an outline of the conference speakers and topics... Keynote Speaker: J. William Costerton, PhD The Role of Biofilms in Chronic Bacterial Infections Eva Sapi, PhD Killing Borrelia: An impossible job? Jason A. Carlyon, PhD Interior Decorating: Anaplasma phagocytophilum Remodels Its Host Cell-Derived Vacuole into A Protective Niche Richard Marconi, PhD, Co-Course Director c-di-GMP Regulates Key Steps in the Enzootic Cycle of...

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0 Round Three: Lyme Disease Research Scavenger Hunt

I gave readers an extension until midnight of Friday the 23rd for participating on Round Two of the Lyme Disease Research Scavenger Hunt, and so far, no one has completed both Part A and Part B of Round Two. Because of this, no one qualifies for Round Two and that round is forfeit. Readers playing along at home will have to compete in the remaining rounds and complete both Part A and Part B. So far, we have one winner of Round One, Rita. (The answers to Round Two will be posted in a separate upcoming entry.) Now I'll present those who...

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1 The Curious Case Of Cholesterol

This article got passed on to me: Scientists Disarm AIDS Virus’ Attack on Immune System http://www.voanews.com/english/news/health/-Scientists-Disarm-AIDS-Virus-Attack-on-Immune-System-130313993.html And you might be looking at that title, wondering what HIV has to do with Lyme disease. Well, I'm wondering if there is any relationship... Excerpt: "Scientists say they have found a way to disarm the AIDS virus in research that could lead to a vaccine. Researchers have discovered that if they eliminate a cholesterol membrane surrounding the...

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2 Speculation About Borrelial Blebs And Camouflage

I've read one abstract and one blog entry that are making me wonder about Borrelia burgdorferi's survival mechanisms - in particular blebbing and camouflage. In this article on the MicrobiologyBytes blog, the author discusses how certain bacteria use sphingomyelins from their hosts in order to create their own lipids: "Fifteen years ago, in a series of elegant studies, Hackstadt and colleagues showed that the obligate intracellular bacteria Chlamydia trachomatis save on their lipid needs by incorporating sphingomyelins (SMs) made by their host....

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0 Failure of Topical Antibiotics to Prevent Disseminated Borrelia burgdorferi Infection

Last week, I posted an article on how topical azithromycin could help prevent Lyme disease infection. And now, this new abstract has turned up on PubMed... Failure of Topical Antibiotics to Prevent Disseminated Borrelia burgdorferi Infection Following a Tick Bite in C3H/HeJ Mice. Wormser GP, Daniels TJ, Bittker S, Cooper D, Wang G, Pavia CS. J Infect Dis. 2011 Sep 19. [Epub ahead of print] Abstract A prior study in mice has shown that the timely application of topical antibiotics to the skin at the tick bite site could eradicate Borrelia burgdorferi...

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0 An accident leads Yale scientists to tick-borne disease in Russia

The Connecticut Mirror has an article on the backstory behind discovering that Borrelia miyamotoi leads to infection in people: An accident leads Yale scientists to tick-borne disease in Russia http://www.ctmirror.org/story/13955/lyme-new-tick-borne-disease-yale You've got to love this excerpt: Fish's lab was studying Lyme disease transmission using ticks and mice, exposing ticks to mice that had been infected, and to others that had not. But the ticks exposed to uninfected mice appeared to be infected. "I gave everybody in the lab hell for...

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0 How To Avoid Sample Contamination

A quick and dirty primer for those who want to ensure that their samples do not get cross-contaminated with DNA from other bacteria, viruses, etc.: Use aerosol barrier pipette tips. UV-irradiate all workstations used for the setup of master mix preps and PCRs. Treat all surfaces and tube racks with a 10% bleach solution. Use frequent and careful glove changes. Perform DNA extraction, PCR setup, and PCR product analysis in different rooms. Use clean systems. Use a negative control such as UV-treated, deionized water. Do not do bacterial work,...

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0 Remember Borrelia miyamotoi?

There's an article in The New York Times today about a new tickborne disease caused by Borrelia miyamotoi: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/health/20tick.html While they're reporting this as a new illness, this strain of Borrelia was found in the United States in 2001, and at the time, it wasn't known for certain whether or not it caused disease in human hosts. Now, Russians have evidence of human infection, and it is suspected a small percentage of people in the United States are infected with Borrelia miyamotoi. A Borrelia miyamotoi infection...

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2 Tom Grier Speaks On Coast To Coast

Tom Grier spoke on the AM radio show, Coast to Coast, early this morning. Tom Grier has worked in the pharmaceutical industry and has a BS in Chemistry and Biology and an MS in Medical Microbiology (Immunology) from the University of Minnesota. Tom says: "The main point is that Lyme gets into the brain, we can't test for it, and all the brain studies are done by physicians on their own nickel. We can get millions from the CDC and NIH for deer and tick studies but nothing for studies that prove the experts wrong and the patients are disabled by...

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0 News: Topical Antibiotic Used For Early Lyme Disease Treatment

It may be that using a topical gel after a tick bite may be all that is needed to treat Lyme disease in the future. Maybe... But I see a problem in this automatically because it doesn't address the presence of other tickborne infections... Researchers Say Local Antibiotic Therapy Stops Lyme Disease Reinhard Straubinger at Ludwig-Maximilians Universität (LMU) München has now shown, in an animal model, that application of a gel containing the antibiotic azithromycin to the site of the bite rapidly terminates the infection. The efficacy of this...

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0 New Lyme Disease Detection Tests

The latest buzz in the Lyme disease patient community is over Advanced Laboratory Services' new culture test for Borrelia burgdorferi. The new test uses histology and growth characteristics in conjunction with fluorescent immunostaining to detect Borrelia burgdorferi. Positive results can be further confirmed using standard molecular biology methods (PCR) based on DNA sequencing. The test is now available for use in all states except California, New York, and Florida, which require a higher level of lab certification for testing. Physicians...

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0 Science Articles Of Interest: C. difficile, Alzheimer's, and tinnitus

Since I haven't been doing a regular Friday Four column in some time, I haven't been posting about interesting articles as much lately. I wanted to take the time to point out a few which readers might take an interest in on combatting C. difficile, using antidepressants to fight Alzheimer's disease, and methods of stopping tinnitus in its tracks. New way to treat common hospital-acquired infection: Novel approach may offer treatment for other bacterial diseases  ScienceDaily (2011-08-22) -- Researchers have discovered a molecular process...

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0 Identification of membrane associated drug targets in Borrelia burgdorferi ZS7- subtractive genomics approach.

Identification of membrane associated drug targets in Borrelia burgdorferi ZS7- subtractive genomics approach. Shivkumar Madagi,Vijayakumari Mali Patil, Saremy Sadegh,Abhishek Kumar Singh, Bhavana Garwal, Atreyi Banerjee, Usha Talambedu,and Biplab Bhattacharjee. Bioinformation. 2011; 6(9): 356–359. Abstract Lyme disease is an infectious disease caused by a spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi ZS7. This spirochete is most often spread by ticks. Single antibiotic therapy is sufficient for containment of the early stage progression of the disease but...

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5 News: Border hopping ends for Canadian Lyme disease patients

Came across this article recently, Border-hopping ends for Lyme disease sufferers. Excerpt: "Instead of draining their savings to seek controversial lyme-disease treatment in the United States, suffering British Columbians can now find a similar treatment close to home, at the offices of select naturopathic physicians. The new option is due to a one-year-old regulation change in the province that allows naturopaths to prescribe drugs, once they pass a test." MORE at the link: http://www.bclocalnews.com/news/129326658.html So, apparently one...

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5 Doctors Who Decide Long Term Antibiotic Treatment May Be Warranted

This article by a doctor, Eating Crow With Lyme, has been making the rounds on several Lyme disease support lists and sites. A lot of patients are feeling vindicated that longer term treatment with antibiotics is gaining more support when they see a doctor who used to hew tightly to the IDSA Lyme disease treatment guidelines has changed his mind. What made the difference for the doctor in this article? To quote from the source: "What changed my mind? Personal experience. A family member began to suffer a wide variety of strange symptoms 12...

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0 On Explaining One's Position

I recently received a comment on a post in the past from someone who has identified as a skeptic, condemning this blog for offering any support for chronic Lyme disease as a concept. I'm not specifically linking to it now, but mention it on general principle because I think it reflects a misunderstanding on what I'm trying to do and my position in the controversy. I mention in numerous places throughout this blog that I have a skeptical nature, and I have also had persisting symptoms since I contracted Lyme disease. I've stated that I think chronic...

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