Ixodes scapularis ticks are implicated in transmission of Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia miyamotoi, Babesia microti, and Powassan virus. We describe the establishment and implementation of the first multiplex real-time PCR assay with the capability to simultaneously detect and differentiate all five pathogens in a single reaction. The application of this assay for ana...

OBJECTIVE To determine the frequency and characteristics of babesiosis cases, and to assess the impact of the introduction of a tick-borne infection diagnostic panel on babesiosis diagnosis in the region surrounding La Crosse, Wisconsin, where babesiosis in non-travelers was previously rare. METHODS In the spring of 2013, we conducted a point-in-time survey of Ixodes scopuloris ticks for the ...

A new type of piroplasm, phylogenetically closest to Babesia microti-like parasites previously detected in Eurasian red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris orientis), was identified in a rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) imported from China. After challenge with Plasmodium cynomolgi M strain blood-stage parasites, the rhesus monkey repeatedly showed markedly reduced levels of Plasmodium parasitemia when c...

Formerly known as Nantucket fever, babesiosis is increasing in incidence across the Northeastern United States. Because of its emerging health risk globally, it is important to be aware of its various presenting manifestations. We present the case of a middle-aged man with haemolytic anaemia from Babesia microti infection.

Babesia microti causes "emergency" human babesiosis. However, little is known about the alterations in B. microti invaded red blood cells (Bm-RBCs) at the individual cell level. Through quantitative phase imaging techniques based on laser interferometry, we present the simultaneous measurements of structural, chemical, and mechanical modifications in individual mouse Bm-RBCs. 3-D refractive ind...

The frequency of coinfection with Borrelia burgdorferi and either Anaplasma phagocytophila or Babesia microti among patients with erythema migrans, the initial skin lesion of Lyme disease, was assessed in 2 mainland locations in Rhode Island and Connecticut in a 4-year prospective study. Of the 93 patients with culture-proven erythema migrans, 2 (2%) patients had coinfection with A. phagocytoph...

To assess the potential risk for other tick-borne diseases, we collected 100 adult Ixodes scapularis in Hunterdon County, a rapidly developing rural county in Lyme disease endemic western New Jersey. We tested the ticks by polymerase chain reaction for Borrelia burgdorferi, Babesia microti, and the rickettsial agent of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE). Fifty-five ticks were infected with a...

Apicomplexa tick-borne hemoparasites, including Babesia bovis, Babesia microti, and Theileria equi are responsible for bovine and human babesiosis and equine theileriosis, respectively. These parasites of vast medical, epidemiological, and economic impact have complex life cycles in their vertebrate and tick hosts. Large gaps in knowledge concerning the mechanisms used by these parasites for ge...