Scientists have found the key to fighting Lyme disease in human sweat (5 photos)

Scientists say there is new hope in the fight against Lyme disease, an infection caused by Borrelia burgdorferi ticks. It is dangerous because it often gives chronic forms. Surprisingly, the secret to fighting infection lies in human sweat.





Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Helsinki have been exploring ways to prevent Lyme disease, and have found a clue in human sweat. They found that sweat contains a secretoglobin (protein) called SCGB1D2, which inhibits the growth of the bacteria that causes the disease. According to a study published in the journal Nature Communications, one third of the population carries a genetic variant of this protein.



For the study, researchers analyzed the DNA and medical records of 7,000 people who had been diagnosed with Lyme disease. They exposed normal and mutated versions of SCGB1D2 to Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme disease, and injected them into laboratory mice. The team found that the normal version of the protein "significantly" inhibited bacterial growth. To achieve the same effect, twice as much mutated protein was needed. Mice injected with bacteria exposed to the mutated SCGB1D2 became infected with Lyme disease. And when they used the normal version of the protein, they didn't even get sick.





Now scientists are exploring the possibility of using this protein - for example, to create skin creams to help prevent disease and treat infections that are resistant to antibiotics.

"We have effective antibiotics that work 90% of the time, but in the 40 years we've known about Lyme disease, we haven't moved on. 10% of people don't get better after taking antibiotics, and for them there is no effective treatment," - says Michal Kaspi Tal, chief scientist in MIT's Department of Biological Engineering.