SEJ
Published on SEJ (https://www.sej.org)

Home > "A New Culprit in Lyme Disease"

"A New Culprit in Lyme Disease" [1]

"Mosquitoes may be receiving all the attention amid the Zika virus epidemic, but they are hardly the only disease vectors to worry about. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., have discovered a new species of tick-borne bacteria that causes Lyme disease.

The new species, provisionally named Borrelia mayonii, after the clinic, has been found only in the upper Midwest but may be present elsewhere.

Six patients with the infection were identified by the researchers. The patients had symptoms similar to, but not precisely the same as, those caused by Borrelia burgdorferi, until now the only species known to cause Lyme disease in North America."

Karen Weintraub reports for the New York Times February 15, 2016. [2]

Environmental Health [3]
National (U.S.) [4]
Public [5]
Source: NY Times [2], 02/17/2016
  • Contact Us  |
  • Donate  |
  • Join  |
  • Members  |
  • Privacy & Security Policies  |
  • Reach SEJ Members  |
  • Renew  |
  • Site Map
The Society of Environmental Journalists
1629 K Street NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20006
Telephone: (202) 558-2055
Email: sej@sej.org
© 2026 The Society of Environmental Journalists. All Rights Reserved.
All graphics © SEJ, unless otherwise stated.

Source URL:https://www.sej.org/headlines/new-culprit-lyme-disease

Links
[1] https://www.sej.org/headlines/new-culprit-lyme-disease [2] http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/16/health/lyme-disease-cause-bacteria-borrelia-mayonii.html [3] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/environmental-health [4] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national [5] https://www.sej.org/taxonomy/term/81