Hi All,
I got this announcement this morning in my emails - I believe it to be great news as this is one of the tick-borne diseases that everyone has the chance to be exposed to through the bite of a tick or other carrier:
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130815172401.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29"UC Davis scientists have uncovered a potential drug target for the development of an effective therapy against the debilitating, chronic form of the bacterial disease brucellosis, which primarily afflicts people in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern countries.
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Brucellosis, which affects about
500,000 people worldwide each year, typically is caused by ingestion of unsterilized milk or close contact with body secretions from infected animals. Symptoms include intermittent or irregular fever of variable duration, headache, weakness, profuse sweating, chills, weight loss and generalized aching. It can also cause long-lasting or chronic symptoms such as recurrent fevers, joint pain and fatigue."
And from here:
www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7-153-10370_12150_12220-26503--,00.html "Brucella infections are usually transmitted by oral exposure, but susceptible animals can also be infected by contamination of the eyes, wounds and the genital tract. Males can transmit brucellosis during copulation, either by contaminated semen, or by genitals contaminated by an infected female.
Edible tissues of infected animals can infect humans and predators. Several species are known to spread Brucella organisms in their feces and urine. Milk from infected cattle and goats is a potential source of infection. Within animal populations, aborted fetuses, vaginal discharges and drainage from abscesses are all likely means of disseminating the disease. As bison constitute a potential threat to the bovine brucellosis eradication program in the U.S., they are subject to federal interstate regulations similar to those affecting cattle. In Alaska and Siberia, reindeer seem to be affected more disastrously by brucellosis than other wild species.
During bacteremic stages of infection, blood-sucking parasites may serve as vectors. The role of ticks, fleas and other parasites can only be conjectured; but the fact that they become contaminated establishes their role as potential vectors."
***I don't stand on either side of this, just passing along information!!
