A defense molecule isolated in ticks infected with the Babesia sp. parasite may protect animals and humans against infection.

Borrelia burgdorferi seem to be particularly successful at infecting Bernese Mountain Dogs, according to recent research. Swiss researchers found that more than half of the dogs they tested were infected with the spiral-shaped bacteria, which are passed on by ticks and can also cause Lyme disease in humans.

People who have high cholesterol levels may be much more susceptible to a particular disease transmitted by the bites of ticks, a new study in mice suggests. Scientists infected mice with the bacterium that causes human granulocytic anaplasmosis, a disease with flu-like symptoms. Bacteria levels were 10 times greater in mice that were genetically predisposed to high cholesterol levels and that were also fed a high-cholesterol diet.