In an authoritative new book, Columbia University Medical Center physicians Brian Fallon and Jennifer Sotsky explain why there is much cause for optimism. “Through rapid genetic sequencing, scientists can identify many different strains of Borrelia burgdorferi (causative agent of Lyme disease) as well as new tick-borne microbial infections, such as Borrelia miyamotoi, Borrelia mayonii, and the Heartland virus,”  says Fallon. The discovery of these new microbes inside ticks has significantly helped researchers since it “provides a starting point for the study of pathogenesis, vaccine development, and treatment.”  Fallon notes that researchers have also been able to screen thousands of drugs to determine which have the ability to destroy Borrelia.

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Brian Fallon, MD, MPH is the Director of the Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases Research Center at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center and the author with Jennifer Sotsky of Conquering Lyme Disease: Science Bridges the Great Divide, published in 2018 by Columbia University Press.

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