Gain Strength and Inspiration through the SDLA Empowerment Circle 

By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

Written by: Christina P. Kantzavelos

Driven by a desire to create a centralized resource and supportive community for those impacted by Lyme and tick-borne disease, the San Diego Lyme Alliance (SDLA) was formed as an affiliate of the Bay Area Lyme Foundation in 2019. The challenges of navigating Lyme disease are vast and need not be faced alone. So following in the footsteps of past and existing local Lyme support groups, SDLA established three regional “Circle of Support” group meetings in Carlsbad, Scripps Ranch and La Jolla. Creating this safe space for open dialogue enabled Lyme patients, family and caregivers to build meaningful connections, feel supported and stay informed.

In March 2020, life changed abruptly. COVID-19 demonstrated the importance of human communication and connectedness, with a rise in feelings of isolation, depression and anxiety. While the pandemic presented the challenges of isolation, it also provided the opportunity to explore new ways of interacting and building meaningful connections. Quick to adapt to the online virtual world via Zoom, the “Empowerment Circle” (EC) was born in June 2020. Initially facilitated by Mark Guay, Christina P. Kantzavelos and Patricia Cosulich have joined as co-facilitators to round out the EC Team. Over time our group has brought together participants from San Diego and beyond, including San Francisco, the east coast, and even Canada. The pandemic presented an unexpected opportunity to bring people together more effectively, transcending time, geographical separation and physical limitations.

Nanotrap® Urine Test for Lyme Borreliosis

By Bay Area Lyme Foundation
– Wendy Adams, Research Grant Director, Bay Area Lyme Foundation

 

Bay Area Lyme has a goal to leverage the entrepreneurial spirit and innovation of Silicon Valley in order to catalyze novel projects around the country. Our belief is that the application of cutting-edge technologies will have a dramatic impact on making Lyme disease easy to diagnose and simple to cure. We collaborate with world-class scientists focused on Lyme projects which leverage knowledge from other fields of medicine and research. We also prioritize engagement with the investment and biotech communities so that breakthroughs in the laboratory can be translated more quickly to patients. Since our inception, our scientific research funding priorities have been focused on supporting diagnostic and therapeutic projects.

It is impossible to cure Lyme disease in every case without understanding how to diagnose it accurately. There are many reasons for this disease being difficult to identify—ticks are tiny, the EM skin rash is often misdiagnosed and symptoms overlap with other acute diseases like influenza. Most importantly, the widely used two tier diagnostic testing required for Lyme disease is currently the ELISA and Western Blot, which only detects the immune response (indirect detection) and not the pathogen itself. Because it can take at least 2-4 weeks for the body to generate antibodies, these tests have been shown to miss up to 70% of acute Lyme cases. These tests also do not detect other related Borrelia species, such as Borrelia miyamotoi), and cannot determine when the infection is eradicated.

Bay Area Lyme Foundation Announces Call for Entries for the 2021 Emerging Leader Awards

2021 Emerging Leader Awards
By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact:
Tara DiMilia, 908-947-0500, tara.dimilia@TMstrat.com

Bay Area Lyme Foundation Announces Call for Entries for the 2021 Emerging Leader Awards

Grant aims to inspire new research toward overcoming the challenges of Lyme disease

PORTOLA VALLEY, Calif., November 17, 2020—Bay Area Lyme Foundation, a leading sponsor of Lyme disease research in the US, is announcing a call for entries for their 2021 Emerging Leader Awards (ELA), which are designed to encourage scientists who embody the future of Lyme disease research leadership in the US. This year, two grants, $250,000, and $100,000 will be awarded. Recipients will be researchers from academia or the private sector in the US. who have not necessarily conducted previous research in tick-borne diseases. All applicants are encouraged to bring learnings from other therapeutic areas to their research projects. Their proposal must have a defined scientific approach and rationale that can advance diagnostics or treatments for Lyme disease. Applications will be accepted through February 15, 2021, at midnight pacific. The full criteria and application for this award can be found here.

“This year has given us all the opportunity to consider the great importance of medical research and the devastation that can arise when a pathogen is not well-understood by the medical and scientific community,” said Wendy Adams, research grant director, Bay Area Lyme Foundation. “We clearly need novel approaches to make Lyme disease easy to diagnose and simple to cure, and we hope these awards offer the support that innovative researchers require.”

The Connection Between Mold Illness and Lyme Disease

By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

Many experts agree that if you are a patient being treated for chronic Lyme disease, but are not getting better, underlying mold toxicity could be at fault. Mold illnesses and Lyme Disease share many symptoms and if all treatments have been exhausted for Lyme with no result, mold could be the hidden offender. According to the book New Paradigms in Lyme Disease Treatment, “mold toxicity causes patients to develop symptoms from Lyme infections and vice versa, and people with weakened immune systems are far more susceptible to sickness from mold…and doctors are just beginning to understand and explore it, and like Lyme disease, many conventional physicians are not even aware of it.”

Many people know that black mold poses a huge threat, but are unfamiliar with other types of mold causing health issues. Mold illness causes extreme inflammation, called chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS) and when coupled with Lyme disease, symptoms such as fever, headache, and fatigue are exacerbated. Often, mold-related allergies are misdiagnosed or worse, many doctors assume the problems are psychosomatic. Because of this, many people are not aware they are suffering from CIRS plus Lyme disease simultaneously.

Strengthen Yourself Against Tick-borne Diseases, Covid19, and MSIDS

Ticktective Podcasts
By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

Richard Horowitz, MD

Bay Area Lyme Foundation Advisory Board Member, Richard Horowitz, MD and author of “Why Can’t I Get Better?” speaks about his experience and novel research on Tick-borne Diseases, Fire/Smoke Exposure, Covid19, and Multiple Systemic Infectious Disease Syndrome (MSIDS). Ticktective Video and Podcast Editor: Kiva Schweig.

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Laure Woods: Empowering Women in Science

By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

Laure Woods (Photo – Drew Altizer Photography)

“Empowering Women in Science” featuring Laure Woods, Class of ’80

from the Santa Catalina Spring/Summer Bulletin 2020

After obtaining a B.S. in Animal Science from UC Davis, Laure Woods ’80 went on to a career in clinical research, working with pharmaceutical companies such as Matrix Pharmaceutical and Genelabs Technologies. She also founded her own consulting business to advise companies that test the safety and efficacy of medications, devices, diagnostic products, and treatment regimens intended for human use. Laure also formed a private foundation focused on the education, health, and welfare of children, and founded the LaureL STEM Fund, which led to her work with Santa Catalina’s robotics team.

HOW DID YOU HELP START THE PROJECT AT SANTA CATALINA? In 2017, I contacted the school with my desire to help fund an all-girls robotics team. This decision was driven by my experience at the FIRST Robotics competitions I attended with my daughter’s team. There were more boys than girls and one or no all-girls teams at the competitions. So of course I contacted my alma mater! I was so excited to learn that a group of students, led by Madison Gong ’18, had already formed a team and were using a room for their robotics lab in the Sister Claire and Sister Christine Mathematics and Science Center. I had recently started the LaureL STEM Fund as part of my family foundation, and one of our goals is to create more opportunities for young women in STEM. We were excited to partner with the Catalina robotics team—entirely driven by students.

Santa Clara County Declares Lyme Disease Awareness

By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug. 13, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors unanimously declared Lyme Disease Awareness in the County. The proposal, put forward by Supervisor Dave Cortese, brings a heightened and renewed focus on a growing public health crisis in the County.

On May 13, the Santa Clara County also promoted National Lyme Disease Awareness Month and the Center for Disease Control’s “Tick Lunch and Learn Series” on the County’s social media presence.

“With our belief that being outside is safer than being inside in preventing COVID-19 transmissions, it is important that we call attention to Lyme Disease, which is also a significant public health threat,” said Supervisor Dave Cortese. “Thank you to the Bay Area Lyme Foundation for bringing awareness to this tick-borne disease and the precautions we can take to prevent it.”

Lyme Disease and its co-infections represent the fastest-growing vector-borne disease in the country. Representing a significant public health threat, Lyme is an infectious disease transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected blacklegged tick, found in 56 out of 58 counties in California—or 97 percent. Early detection is key for a quick recovery, and that is where awareness can be life-altering.

Inadequacy in the medical field to accurately diagnose a Lyme rash

By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

– Wendy Adams, Research Grant Director, Bay Area Lyme Foundation

Erythema migrans (EM) is the hallmark sign of infection with B. burgdorferi. An EM is defined as an expanding annular (round) lesion or rash of at least 10cm (2.5in). Most rashes occur 3–30 days after infection, however there are case reports that show EMs can appear sooner than three days post infection.

The term “bullseye” rash is often used synonymously with EM. But an EM is not required to have central clearing or a target appearance. The rash can take many forms, and may have a raised bump in the middle, can be itchy or warm, and can have a bluish cast like a bruise. It can be round or even oval. Only 20% of Lyme disease with an EM have the bullseye presentation. That means that only 1 in 6 total Lyme cases will have a rash with a target appearance.

The rash also may not be present at all. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that 70-80% of patients may exhibit the erythema migrans, this number can vary by study. For example, a 2010 study showed that in the state of Maine only 43% of Lyme patients exhibited this rash when infected with Lyme.

Lyme Diagnostics, Radioactive Ticks, and More

By Bay Area Lyme Foundation

Artem Rogovskyy, DVM, PhD

Bay Area Lyme’s 2020 Emerging Leader Award Winner, Artem Rogovskyy, DVM, PhD, of the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, discusses radioactive ticks, Lyme diagnostics, and how a kid’s birthday party can lead to novel research. Ticktective Video and Podcast Editor: Kiva Schweig.

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