BORRELIOSIS (LYME/LYME-LIKE DISEASE)
RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND AWARENESS

1. Addressing the Australian government’s position is of the highest importance for the Karl McManus Foundation for Lyme Disease Research & Awareness. Presenting scientific evidence of Borreliosis in Australia will warrant government acknowledgment that it exists here. However, medical research takes time to publish, and the accumulation of evidence to present to the government will be a slow process.
2. Many sufferers of Borreliosis in Australia do not have time to wait for the slow process of changing government policy – they require immediate medical attention. Hence the Foundation is inviting all medical doctors who have Borreliosis patients/or are interested in treating Borreliosis patients to contact the Foundation.
3. The Foundation wishes to support doctors in obtaining further education and training in the diagnosis and treatment of this disease. The Foundation will be raising money to fund travel fellowships for doctors to undergo training by Borreliosis specialists in the USA and Europe.
4. When Borreliosis is recognised by the government, education of all Australian doctors in the diagnosis and treatment of Borreliosis can begin.
5. The aim of the Karl McManus Foundation for Lyme Disease, Research & Awareness is to fund and promote research into Borreliosis in Australia. The Foundation welcomes proposals from researchers that aim to increase the understanding of Borreliosis and to improve the health of individuals suffering with Lyme Disease and associated co-infections and complications.

Key Areas of Educational Awerness

1. Acceptance of Borreliosis as a disease contracted in Australia. The Foundation invites and supports medical doctors treating Borreliosis patients to publish case studies.
2. Improved treatment regimens for Borreliosis. Treatment of Borreliosis must be a multi-factorial approach. To successfully treat a patient it is critical to also treat co-infections and secondary infections. Detoxification is also a vital aspect. Strict monitoring and support of the patient during lengthy antibiotic treatment is essential in recovery. A holistic approach is crucial. The Foundation invites doctors to publish all current or novel treatments.
3. Improving medical and associated care for chronic sufferers of Borreliosis. Recognising Borreliosis in Australia will allow patients to access existing treatment services which at present are unavailable as Borreliosis is not a Medicare approved disease including expensive antibiotics on pharmaceutical benefit scheme to minimize the cost of treatment eg Atovaquone used for treating Babesiosis and hyperbaric treatment.
4. Epidemiology studies of Borreliosis in Australia. It is imperative that regions where clusters of people presenting with Borreliosis are identified. Educational programs for doctors practising in these regions would be a priority for the Foundation to ensure patients are correctly diagnosed and treated.

Key Areas of Research

1. Identifying the genetic sequence of Borrelia species found in Australia. This would allow design of selective DNA recognition primers that will detect the Australian species and confirm patients that are infected with it.
2. Isolating Australian Borrelia and maintaining it in viable culture. It is essential to show that inoculation of a host with the Borrelia strain found in Australia can produce disease.
3. Improving diagnostic testing. In recent years new diagnostic tests have been trialled for both American and European Borrelia species. It is of the utmost importance that we develop new diagnostic tests that target the Borrelia species found in Australia.
4. Identifying the ticks (vectors) that carry Borrelia and which species of Borrelia they transmit. Previously in a study conducted at the University of Newcastle it was shown that Ixodes holocyclus, better known as the paralysis tick, carry a Borrelia species. The species of Borrelia that I. holocyclus carry needs to be identified. Further investigation of other tick species that may act as a vector for Borrelia is required (Wills & Barry, 1991).
5. Identifying native Australian wildlife that act as a reservoir for Borrelia and which species of Borrelia they contain. In two previous studies it was shown that bandicoots (long-nose), kangaroos (Red and Eastern Grey) carry a species of Borrelia (Mackarras, 1959) as well as an Australian native rat (Carley & Pope, 1962). It is important to investigate which native animals are a reservoir for Borrelia.
6. Identifying migratory birds that potentially transfer Borrelia between Northern and Southern Hemispheres and which Borrelia species they transfer trans-globally.
7. Understanding the relationship between Borrelia infection and other diseases: such as Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS/Motor Neurone Disease)(De Cauwer, 2009; Hemmer et al., 2009; Quershi et al., 2009); multiple sclerosis (Brinar & Habek, 2010); Parkinson’s disease (Long-Smith et al., 2009; Spitz et al., 2008); Alzheimer’s disease (Mattson et al., 2010; Miklossy, 2008, MacDonald, 2006); chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS/myalgic encephalomyelitis), optic neuritis (Blanc Et al., 2010) and mitochondriopathy (Finsterer 2004).