UNH prof closes in on Lyme disease breakthrough
WEST HAVEN — A University of New Haven professor is on her way to determining why Lyme disease may be resistant to treatment, citing her diagnosis with the ailment eight years ago as motivation.
Research by Eva Sapi, an associate professor of biology and environmental science at the school, was published Wednesday and says bacteria causing Lyme disease can form a protective layer called biofilm over itself. That special coating may prevent antibiotics from attacking it.
“Why is this important? For other bacteria, biofilms are shown to be very resistant to antibiotics, temperature, anything you can throw at it, it’s protected from it. The bacteria protects itself from a harsh environment,” said Sapi, who is originally from Hungary and also studied at Yale.
Online publication PLOS-ONE, a peer-reviewed, international science journal that stands for the Public Library of Science ONE, printed the study, of which Sapi is the principal author.
Research by Eva Sapi, an associate professor of biology and environmental science at the school, was published Wednesday and says bacteria causing Lyme disease can form a protective layer called biofilm over itself. That special coating may prevent antibiotics from attacking it.
“Why is this important? For other bacteria, biofilms are shown to be very resistant to antibiotics, temperature, anything you can throw at it, it’s protected from it. The bacteria protects itself from a harsh environment,” said Sapi, who is originally from Hungary and also studied at Yale.
Online publication PLOS-ONE, a peer-reviewed, international science journal that stands for the Public Library of Science ONE, printed the study, of which Sapi is the principal author.
Sapi learned she had Lyme disease, a tick-borne illness, about eight years ago after she began feeling ill and had started a job at UNH. Doctors performed tests for several months before they determined Lyme disease caused her symptoms.
“I became very ill to point that I couldn’t even walk … I was in the dark, and I didn’t know what to do, and in the meantime, I didn’t feel good,” Sapi said. “The whole experience really prompted me to look into this disease.”
Lyme disease, which was first found in Connecticut in 1975, costs the country around $1 billion annually, when considering how many doctors and tests it can take to be diagnosed, legal fees connected to incorrect diagnoses, and more, according to Sapi.
She wanted to find out why treatments often aren’t effective and what other diseases or parasites people and animals could contract from ticks. Over the years, while working with a team of UNH graduate students and Michael Rossi, co-chair of the UNH Department of Biology, Sapi found that Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, is more resistant to treatment when it’s in certain forms and covered in a protective biofilm. Once treatment ends, the bacteria remains and can become more active.
The next step is proving biofilm is in ticks and tissues of infected humans or animals and if it helps protect the bacteria against treatment, such as antibiotics, Sapi said.
Rossi said he got involved about three years ago because he specialized in a testing technique Sapi wanted to use in her work and will continue assisting in the research
“I became very ill to point that I couldn’t even walk … I was in the dark, and I didn’t know what to do, and in the meantime, I didn’t feel good,” Sapi said. “The whole experience really prompted me to look into this disease.”
Lyme disease, which was first found in Connecticut in 1975, costs the country around $1 billion annually, when considering how many doctors and tests it can take to be diagnosed, legal fees connected to incorrect diagnoses, and more, according to Sapi.
She wanted to find out why treatments often aren’t effective and what other diseases or parasites people and animals could contract from ticks. Over the years, while working with a team of UNH graduate students and Michael Rossi, co-chair of the UNH Department of Biology, Sapi found that Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, is more resistant to treatment when it’s in certain forms and covered in a protective biofilm. Once treatment ends, the bacteria remains and can become more active.
The next step is proving biofilm is in ticks and tissues of infected humans or animals and if it helps protect the bacteria against treatment, such as antibiotics, Sapi said.
Rossi said he got involved about three years ago because he specialized in a testing technique Sapi wanted to use in her work and will continue assisting in the research
“It is a hypothesis that’s worth pursuing, and she’s doing an excellent job,” Rossi said.
Sapi secured grants from multiple organizations that address Lyme disease, including Stamford’s Lyme Research Alliance. According to Executive Director Peter Wild, the Lyme Research Alliance will provide more funding for Sapi’s studies.
“We wanted to know more about the organisms that outlast the antibiotic onslaught, and Eva was proposing to do that, and I’m delighted to say she’s found at least one mechanism by which Borrelia survives … and that is biofilm,” Wild said. “Once you understand what the mechanism is, then you’re looking for ways to disrupt that mechanism. ... Researchers can then develop some targets for therapies.”
Call Susan Misur at 203-789-5742.
Sapi secured grants from multiple organizations that address Lyme disease, including Stamford’s Lyme Research Alliance. According to Executive Director Peter Wild, the Lyme Research Alliance will provide more funding for Sapi’s studies.
“We wanted to know more about the organisms that outlast the antibiotic onslaught, and Eva was proposing to do that, and I’m delighted to say she’s found at least one mechanism by which Borrelia survives … and that is biofilm,” Wild said. “Once you understand what the mechanism is, then you’re looking for ways to disrupt that mechanism. ... Researchers can then develop some targets for therapies.”
Call Susan Misur at 203-789-5742.
