UNC-Led Research Reveals Lyme Disease Ticks Gaining Ground in Western North Carolina
New research led by the University of North Carolina (UNC) has found that ticks carrying Lyme disease are becoming more prevalent in western North Carolina. The study, which focused on Biltmore Forest in Buncombe County, revealed that approximately 40% of adult blacklegged ticks tested carried Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria responsible for Lyme disease. This infection rate is comparable to those historically observed in parts of the Northeastern U.S., an area traditionally associated with high rates of tickborne illness. Dr. Ross Boyce, a UNC Health infectious diseases specialist and researcher with UNC School of Medicine, highlighted that this finding is striking given previous assumptions that Lyme disease was not widespread in North Carolina. The research also detected other disease-causing bacteria in the ticks, including those associated with anaplasmosis and hard tick relapsing fever, potentially marking the farthest south these pathogens have been found in ticks. 
