In the United States and more particularly in California, a study shows the presence of ticks in beach areas. However, these usually live in forest areas. This presence is of concern, as these ticks are potentially c capable of transmitting the Lyme disease.
Lyme disease often appears without symptoms, but is sometimes disabling . Among other things, it is a question of lasting joint pain, partial paralysis of the limbs and sometimes even heart damage. This disease is transmitted by the bite of a tick previously infected with a bacterium of the Spirochaetales family. . Each year, the disease affects approximately 250,000 people in Europe and 300,000 in the United States.
The Bay Area Lyme Foundation published a study in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology on April 23, 2021. Researchers from several US universities have found Ixodes pacificus ticks adults carrying Borrelia burgdorferi – bacteria responsible for Lyme disease – in beach areas in California.
The fact is that the rate of presence of these ticks on beach areas is equivalent to that of their usual places of residence. Indeed, the species is generally confined to the woods and forests of the Pacific zone the United States. In California, these ticks tend to live in certain wooded areas in the northwest of the state.
“The high rate of disease-carrying ticks in the coastal areas really surprised us. And by looking at all of the tick-borne pathogens simultaneously, it seems we need to rethink local disease risks." said Daniel Salkeld, lead author of the study in a statement.
For the researchers, the study demonstrates the need to better inform the population as a whole on the risks of diseases transmitted by ticks. It is also about updating this same information for healthcare providers.
In August 2020, we mentioned the work of a French laboratory (Valneva), based in Nantes. For a decade, researchers have been trying to develop a vaccine against Lyme disease. For the time being, the progress of research makes it possible to foresee a marketing for 2025. According to the latest news, phase 2 of the tests has been launched, concerning 800 people. Then, phase 3 will integrate 16,000 volunteers in both Europe and the United States. The fact is that the bacteria are not identical on the two continents, so it is a question of a regionality of the bacteria .
