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| Natthida Tongluan, a graduate research assistant in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, conducts research in the Laboratory of Infectious Diseases. |
The research, led by Kevin Macaluso, Ph.D., chair of microbiology and immunology, will make an assessment of leprosy infection and transmission by Amblyomma ticks. Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, is an infection with Mycobacterium leprae, a bacteria found in the southern United States and elsewhere that spreads to animals, mostly armadillos, and people.
“We know from our previous study that ticks have the potential to harbor leprosy,” Macaluso said. “The next step will advance the field by attempting to pinpoint the details of transmission.”
The researchers at the Whiddon College of Medicine will work in collaboration with the Laboratory Research Branch of National Hansen’s Disease Programs in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The researchers’ previous study, published earlier this year in Frontiers in Microbiology, suggested that ticks have the potential for transmitting leprosy. They injected ticks in the nymph stage with leprosy and used DNA analysis to conclude that the infection could be maintained in tick-derived cells. Natthida Tongluan, a graduate research assistant in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, was lead author of the paper.
Often considered an ancient disease from biblical times, leprosy is far from eradicated. In 2019, more than 200,000 new cases worldwide were reported to the World Health Organization. Some 150 to 200 new cases are reported each year in the United States, mostly in Florida, California, Louisiana, Hawaii, Texas and New York.
The majority of leprosy patients report that they spend extensive time outdoors but rarely come in contact with armadillos, a known carrier of the disease, or infected people. While researchers have long believed arthropods could play a role, they have not been able to find conclusive evidence to that effect.
