The United States has created a vaccine for a disease that scares New Yorkers

A vaccine for Lyme disease may soon provide revolutionary protection against tick-borne disease. Researchers at Yale University say the new formula is very similar to the COVID-19 vaccine and successfully protects guinea pigs bitten by the Lyme disease vector. ABC27.

Instead of forcing the immune system to fight Lyme disease, vaccine actually attacks the root of the problem - the tick's saliva. The study authors say the new vaccine immediately triggers a reaction on the skin of a bite victim if bitten by an infected tick. This reaction helps the victim find and remove the tick faster, thereby limiting the amount of time the tick has to infect a person with Lyme disease. Thus, the vaccine prevents the very fact of infection. This vaccine uses the same mRNA technology as COVID-19 vaccines.

What is Lyme disease

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that enters the human body through the bite of a tick vector. The most recognizable symptom of the disease is an apple-shaped rash. A rash will form around the bite site after a few days or weeks.

Lyme disease usually causes these symptoms at first:

• rash;
• heat;
• headache;
• severe tiredness.

However, if a person with this condition does not receive treatment soon, the infection will spread to the joints, heart, and nervous system. This can cause serious complications.

On the subject: Anaplasmosis: Dangerous Tick-borne Disease Surges in New York

About 40 cases of Lyme disease are reported in the United States each year. The study authors say that this number could actually be 000 times higher. In addition, Lyme disease is not the only disease carried by ticks.

“There are several tick-borne diseases, and this vaccine approach potentially offers broader protection than a vaccine targeting a specific pathogen,” explained Erol Fickrig, professor at the Yale School of Medicine and the Yale School of Public Health. "It can also be used in combination with more traditional pathogen-based vaccines to improve their effectiveness."

Blocking saliva - preventing disease

Researchers explain that the black-footed tick Ixodes scapularis is a carrier of the causative agent of Lyme disease Borrelia burgdorferi... This bacterium contains several proteins, and scientists have focused their research on 19 different types.

Working with the University of Pennsylvania, they analyzed the mRNA fragments that make all 19 proteins in tick saliva. The scientists who created the COVID-19 vaccine used the same strategy to develop a formula that protects against the SARS-Cov-2 virus.

University staff used guinea pigs in the study. The team found that the vaccinated animals quickly reddened the bite after encountering a disease-carrying tick. The researchers removed the ticks as soon as redness appeared. As a result, none of the guinea pigs developed Lyme disease. Conversely, about half of the unvaccinated guinea pigs became infected with B. burgdorferi bacteria, even when the researchers removed the ticks.

On the subject: How to properly treat a tick bite and when to see a doctor

Interestingly, the vaccine successfully protected immunized guinea pigs from a single tick bite, even if the researchers left the tick on the animal's skin. On the other hand, a single tick bite resulted in Lyme disease in 60% of unvaccinated guinea pigs. The vaccine has its limitations. The results show that protection against Lyme disease was reduced when three ticks adhered to vaccinated guinea pigs.

Will the vaccine work in humans?

The Yale University team warns that this vaccine is not a finished product. They need to do more tests to see if it protects people.

For example, in mice, the vaccine did not induce resistance to tick-borne infections. The study authors believe this is partly due to the fact that the skin of guinea pigs and humans has more layers than mice. Ticks may also use other feeding methods from mice. Mice are a natural host for ticks, scientists say I. scapularis.