Vermont has second highest Lyme disease rate in nation; Researchers hope to genetically modify mice

Researchers in New York have found that white-footed mice are closely linked to the number of blacklegged ticks, Stateline (via the Journal-Opinion) reports: “A year with a large mouse population was followed by about a 40% increase in nymphal ticks the following year.”

Vermont’s 3 year average incidence rate for Lyme disease is the second highest in the U.S.A.’s and the rate of tickborne diseases in Vermont is increasing, according to VTLyme.org.

Still, the number of mice does not necessarily indicate the number of ticks with Lyme disease. Other animals such as skunks and squirrels also feed larval ticks. 

“Because those animals are less efficient at transmitting the bacteria, the mix of hosts can affect how many ticks become infected.”

The link between mice and Lyme is not necessarily new. 

“60 Minutes” reported last year that scientists in Nantucket, where 15% of its residents are afflicted with Lyme, hope to genetically engineer wild mice to reduce the spread of Lyme. 

“We are absolutely speeding up evolution,” an MIT associate professor told the news program. “And that’s precisely why we have to be careful, because we are doing things that couldn’t happen naturally.” 

There are other tickborne diseases as well as Lyme disease, VTLyme.org states. According to the Vermont Department of Health, Bartonella, Babesia, Anaplasmosis, Powassan virus, Erlichiosis, and other tickborne pathogens have been found in Vermont. While “Lyme disease” usually refers specifically to an infection with Borrelia burgdorferi, the term is sometimes used to describe a tickborne illness involving multiple pathogens.

Tickborne diseases can affect the skin, heart, nervous system and joints. They can appear in unique ways and mimic other diseases or disorders including heart conditions, Anxiety, Bi-polar disorder, Multiple sclerosis, Fibromyalgia, Chronic fatigue syndrome, Depression, and more.