Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 16, 2026

Feeding of Ticks on Animals for Transmission and Xenodiagnosis in Lyme Disease Research
Published on: August 31, 2013
Modulatory effect of cattle on risk for lyme disease
Dania Richter1, Franz-Rainer Matuschka
1Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany. drichter@charite.de
Abstract:
To determine the effect of cattle on the risk for Lyme disease, we compared the prevalence of spirochete infection in questing vector ticks collected from a pasture with low-intensity cattle grazing with the prevalence in those collected from a site on which no cattle grazed. The presence of cattle limited the prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi s.l., but not B. miyamotoi, in vector ticks. The reintroduction of traditional, nonintensive agriculture in central Europe may help reduce risk for Lyme disease.
Related Concept Videos
Clinical Significance of Antibiotic Resistance
Bacterial Meningitis II: Pathophysiology
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
Bacterial Phylum Spirochaetes
Bacterial Meningitis
Regulation of Bacterial Virulence

