Who invented lyme disease

However, when that program was abolished by a Presidential directive in , it was transferred to the U. Department of Agriculture for its present use. Some claim that Lyme disease was introduced into the northeastern region of the U.

However, there is ample evidence to indicate that both Ixodes ticks and B. An examination of museum specimens of Ixodes ticks showed that the presence of Lyme disease spirochetes in suitable arthropod vectors preceded — by at least a generation — the year when Lyme disease was first recognized as a distinct clinical entity in the U. The tree was also far older than the team had expected—at least 60, years old.

This means that the bacterium existed in North America long before the disease was described by medicine and long before humans first arrived in North America from across the Bering Strait about 24, years ago.

This findings clarify that the bacterium is not a recent invader. Diverse lineages of B. The explosion of deer in the twentieth century into suburban landscapes, free of wolf predators and with strict hunting restrictions, allowed deer ticks to rapidly invade throughout much of New England and the Midwest.

Climate change has also contributed. Ticks expanded into suburbanized landscapes—full of animals like white-footed mice and robins, excellent hosts for B. The expansion of ticks into habitats with ideal hosts allowed the bacterium to spread. Ancient history of Lyme disease. Symptoms include an expanding body rash, joint pains, fatigue, chills and fever.

Could the spread of Lyme be attributable to a classified, decades-old bioweapons program — as some people claim — or are ticks just as good for spreading misinformation as they are for germs? The ticks-as-weapons issue made headlines back in July , thanks to the U. The amendment passed. Smith said he was inspired to do this by "a number of books and articles suggesting that significant research had been done at U.

In the book, Newby points out that in , the Biological Warfare Laboratories at Fort Detrick created a program investigating ways to spread anti-personnel agents via arthropods insects, crustaceans, and arachnids , with the idea that slow-acting agents wouldn't immediately incapacitate soldiers, but rather make the area dangerous for a long period of time.

While she notes that she was unable to prove definitively Lyme bacteria was used as a bioweapon, "there are plenty of shocking discoveries and scientific leads to lift the veil on the mysteries surrounding tick diseases and the government's response to them. But she stops short of saying that his research was necessarily related to a Lyme disease weapon that was accidentally released into the wild.

Given America's ugly history regarding unethical research , it's fair to ask whether Lyme was inadvertently — or purposely — introduced into the general population. After all, the government conducted hundreds of germ warfare tests and unethical experiments on civilians in the midth century. But most experts say there's nothing to investigate. Philip J.

Baker, executive director of the American Lyme Disease Foundation, wrote a lengthy document debunking claims regarding Lyme disease bioweapons research. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit.

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